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After Attacks on Iran, New Questions about Its Leader

(Washington Post) Yeganeh Torbati - Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is being blamed by many Iranians for pursuing a nuclear program that left Iran internationally isolated and its economy straining under sanctions, and for misreading the willingness of Israel and the U.S. to attack. Practically overnight, the missile and nuclear facilities developed over years at a cost of billions of dollars have sustained heavy losses, and the regional network of allied militant groups he has fostered, such as Hamas and Hizbullah, has been eviscerated. Some supporters are signaling concerns that he is weakened and failing to forcefully lead. "It seems clear to me that Khamenei has never been weaker, that his supporters within the regime have never been weaker," said Afshon Ostovar, a professor and Middle East expert at the Naval Postgraduate School in California. "There's got to be some sense that everything they've put their energy into for the last two generations really has not panned out."
2025-06-29 00:00:00
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