Iran War is a Blessing: What does not kill you, make you stronger!
This is an opinion article is written by Muslim Ahmadi and is translated from Kurdish into English by Kurdish Policy Analysis
The scenes unfolding in Tehran today echo the words of Ruhollah Khomeini: “war is a blessing for us.” What I have witnessed suggests that, for the Islamic Republic, this statement remains deeply true.
Contrary to widespread assumptions, supporters of the regime appear more energized than ever. The deaths of senior figures—including top leadership—have not weakened the system. Instead, they have reinforced a long-standing culture of martyrdom. In Shiite political theology, martyrdom is not an end—it is fuel. Today, that fuel is being mixed with an intensified Iranian nationalism, creating a powerful ideological fusion of religion and nation.
Tehran’s streets reflect this transformation. Posters of “ancient Iran” stand alongside images of Shiite imams. Iranian flags are everywhere—on buildings, cars, motorcycles, and in the hands of citizens. Vendors sell flags, military symbols, and portraits of the dead. Outside Tehran University, carpets are laid out for mass prayers. Hundreds of tents have been erected, where people cook, bake bread, and gather in collective solidarity.
The city feels mobilized. Weapons, uniforms, and war imagery are visible in public spaces. From every direction come chants, lamentations, slogans, and hymns. Those who once concealed their loyalty to the state now openly embrace it, wearing its symbols and asserting their affiliation in the streets.
There was a widespread belief—especially among observers abroad—that a U.S. attack or even the assassination of Ali Khamenei would trigger the collapse of the Islamic Republic. The opposite has happened. What did not destroy the regime has strengthened it.
In this wartime atmosphere, dissent has faded into silence. Those who do not belong to the Islamic Republic have lost visibility, voice, and presence. Long-standing grievances—economic hardship, corruption, repression—have been pushed to the margins. War has reordered priorities, and survival has overtaken criticism.
The Tehran I see today brings to mind the haunting words of Sherko Bekas:
“Tehran does not laugh at anyone except death
He enjoys nothing but death
His wife, his son, his daughter—
They are all called Death
What is not born there is life.”
There is also a deeper ideological consolidation underway. Segments of the Iranian left—both within the so-called “resistance front” and beyond—have historically framed their politics through anti-imperialism. Yet in practice, this has often translated into a quiet alignment with Iranian nationalism. In the early days of the war, by endorsing the Islamic Republic’s “right to legitimate defense,” they granted not only legitimacy to the state, but to the broader structure of the nation-state itself.
This reveals a structural problem. When opposition movements define themselves solely against the Islamic Republic, rather than challenging the underlying political order that sustains it, they inadvertently reinforce the very system they seek to oppose.
The political signals emerging from various opposition figures and parties are not encouraging. But perhaps that should not be surprising. When there are no concrete projects, no independent vision, and when political actors wait for salvation from external or Persian opposition forces, the outcome is stagnation.
In the end, the reality is stark: this war has not weakened the Islamic Republic—it has strengthened it. It has unified its base, legitimized its authority, and silenced its critics.
And yet, despite everything, we remain alive.
Perhaps, in times like these, that alone feels like too much.
#Iran #Tehran #MiddleEast #Geopolitics #WarAnalysis #IslamicRepublic #Khamenei #Nationalism #Shiism #Politics
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