The Requirements For A Lasting Peace In The Middle East – OpEd

The key strategy of religious fascism has been its attempt to transform its war against the Iranian people into a broader conflict between Muslims and Jews.

Over the past 45 years of the religious regime's rule in Iran, not a single moment has passed without war and bloodshed in the region. Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader, has repeatedly declared that if his forces are not fighting in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, or Yemen, they must fight against their own people in Kermanshah, Hamadan, Isfahan, Tehran, and Khorasan—especially targeting women and the youth. Two decades ago, a prominent regime critic warned that the threat posed by the regime's influence in Iraq was a hundred times more dangerous than its nuclear ambitions, arguing that Iran should not be allowed to use Iraq to expand its regional influence.

A Failed Policy of Appeasement

Instead of stopping the mullahs in Iraq, the doors of the country were thrown open to the Iranian regime. Without its foothold in Iraq, the regime could never have spread its war and bloodshed across the region, from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea.

Tragically, hundreds of billions of dollars were released, fueling the war machine of a religious fascism that seeks excuses to suppress popular uprisings and maintain its grip on power. Even the European Parliament’s resolution to place the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the regime’s primary instrument of war and oppression, on the terrorist list was disregarded. Instead, mercenary militias loyal to the IRGC were removed from terrorist lists. Worse still, the arms embargo on the regime was lifted, enabling the supply of weapons to these proxy groups. The catastrophe we are witnessing in the region today is the direct result of these misguided and appeasing policies.

Peace in the Region

As long as the regime of Velayat-e Faqih (Supreme Leader) remains in power, peace and stability in the region will be impossible. Achieving peace requires more than just severing the regime's influence in neighboring countries, though this is necessary; it is not enough on its own.

The history of countries like Afghanistan and Iraq shows that simply toppling a ruling system does not ensure peace. Only a government deeply rooted in society, one that fully embraces the separation of religion from the state, can act as a true force for peace in the region. Without this, the path forward will inevitably lead to further bloodshed and the undermining of peace.

In Iran, a political alternative exists in the form of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), which advocates for a pluralistic republic based on the separation of religion and state—essential conditions for peace and security in the region and beyond.

This alternative is the product of a 60-year-long struggle for freedom against two dictatorships in Iran. Its endurance proves its resilience and its potential to establish fundamental freedoms in Iran. Without these basic rights, rooted in gender equality and the rejection of all forms of discrimination, even including positive discrimination—there can be no reliable peace. A society founded on these principles would dismantle patriarchy, which, left unchecked, could lead to future wars and violence, and it would guarantee sexual, ethnic, and religious freedoms.

Currently, most of the members of this parliament-in-exile are women, and the movement is led by a woman. It is not only the brutal repression of the religious dictatorship that drives these women to fight so fearlessly for freedom; their deep conviction in rejecting gender discrimination has given them the strength to stand up to a regime that attempts to stifle them with its morality police.

The Appeal of the Youth and Insurgents

Despite brutal repression, daily executions, and relentless demonization by the religious dictator, Iran’s younger generation—raised in the age of the internet and able to access the truth firsthand—has shown strong support for this movement. A key example of this is the trial of 104 dissidents close to the NCRI, most of whom have been outside Iran for over 30 years and are now being charged with "terrorism." This trial serves as a pretext for the regime’s assassinations abroad, but its main goal is to prevent the younger generation from joining this alternative.

Nationwide Resistance

The resistance units, formed a decade ago, now number in the thousands across Iran. In the last month alone, they have carried out more than 1,700 operations across the country. These units attack centers of repression and torture in various cities and destroy all symbols of the religious dictatorship. One of the reasons Khamenei has resorted to warmongering in the Middle East is the existence of this vast network of resistance inside Iran, from which the regime cannot escape, just as it struggles to handle its other crises.

During the 2022 uprising, the Iranian people demanded regime change. Iranian society is like a powder keg, and the regime’s goal through repression is to prevent another uprising. But it has failed to extinguish the flame of resistance. Over the past two years, the activities of the resistance units have multiplied across Iran. The people of Iran are calling for a pluralistic republic and the separation of religion and state. This movement is the clearest proof of the Iranian people's determination to overthrow the regime and the validity of the path taken by this alternative.