War in Iran
By Alexander Rakhmetov
We awoke last morning to the United States of America invading Iran and greeted the evening with the news that Khamenei is dead. It has legitimated this using the standard clichés of bringing democracy to the Middle East. Memories of Iraq spring forth to those not afflicted with the political amnesia that so often accompanies modern war.
It is true that Iranians are not free people, neither by prevailing liberal standards of human rights nor by libertarian socialist standards of autonomy and equality. But invasions have seldom changed this.
The United States has, like ancient Athens, expounded vaguely democratic ideals at home but engaged in ruthless realpolitik abroad. They have replaced dictators with other dictators and destroyed liberal republics for the sake of putting someone who will aid American interests in power. Syria is a prominent example – the new administration, which has aided in the present invasion of Iran, has continued the disgusting bloodshed, ultranationalism, and tyrannical repression of the forces the USA aided it in fighting such as ISIS or the previous regime.
Solidarity work will promise strained alliances, as libertarian socialist elements will stand side by side with anti-American campists. Given the flagrant fascistic and imperialist nature of the current American regime one expects at least some pro-protest liberals to oppose the war. Others will close their eyes on imperialist aggression in the name of anyone but Khamenei leading Iran (indeed at the time of writing this I have just passed a protest where they are shouting “what do we want – regime change for Iran!”). This will be a source of tension and potential fragmentation. We must adapt to this.
True liberation comes only from the oppressed themselves. It is their task to burn down their prisons and build a new world, be it in Iran, Venezuela, Syria and Kurdistan or elsewhere. Thus we must stand with the people of Iran against both foreign and domestic aggressors. In Ireland this will mean doing what we can to disrupt our ruling class’s love of Washington and helping refugees while being upfront that Khamenei was no saint either. Such is the international and antimilitarist position.