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The Iranian Social Media Discourse: Few Signs of Support for Overthrow of Regime
(Institute for National Security Studies-Tel Aviv University) Orit Perlov - The discourse on social media by Iranian exiles in the U.S. and Israel centers on the call to overthrow the Iranian regime. However, this campaign does not reflect the true mood in the streets of Iran. No current grassroots campaigns exist to bring people into the streets. Iranians within the country clearly choose to support their country over Israel's military actions. Iranians express their discontent with the "Israeli bear hug" that portrays them as traitors, viewing it as suffocating rather than supportive. Many oppose linking Israel's military actions to their internal struggle to overthrow the regime. Therefore, current expectations of a major popular uprising are more wishful thinking than a reflection of the actual situation on the ground. The writer, former co-editor of the Israel Foreign Ministry website in Arabic, is a social media analyst at INSS.