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The Farce of Iranian Elections

(Israel Hayom) Eyal Zisser - Friday's elections for Iran's Majlis (parliament) and for the Assembly of Experts were apparently a celebration of democracy. President Hassan Rouhani and his fellow reformist camp leader, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, did well and will likely enjoy a much more comfortable position in parliament this time around. But we should question whether the results will really change the way Iran operates in the region and with regard to Israel. After all, there were thousands of candidates demanding real change who were banned from participating in this celebration of democracy. This means that whoever is elected - even if he is committed to reform and change - is part and parcel of the Islamic Revolution and is certainly not looking forward to its collapse. At most, he will try to make improvements to it. Aside from that, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which controls the country's security and defense, is dedicated to safeguarding the spirit of the revolution. If the Guards sense that Rouhani is threatening the revolution or their own status, they are likely to try to overthrow him. Prof. Eyal Zisser is former director of the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University.
2016-02-29 00:00:00
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