EA on WION: After Deadly Repression of Protests, Iran’s Regime is Nervous

Posted by Scott Lucas | Jan 26, 2026 | 2

Iran’s Supreme Leader addresses a meeting, in Tehran, January 17, 2026

Iran’s Regime Brutally Suppresses Protests…For Now

Q&A: How Social Media Is Channeling Popular Discontent in Iran

I joined India’s WION on Sunday to analyze the tense situation in Iran after the regime’s deadly repression of nationwide protests.

With the Trump Administration deploying US warships in the Middle East, I deal with unsupported rumors that the Supreme Leader is in a bunker and has handed his office to his son Masoud.

However, I note that Ayatollah Khamenei, 86, is in declining health. He is making fewer public appearances, the last of which was on January 17.

I then consider the consequences if the Trump Administration launched a military attack on Iran, in the country and across the region.

Watch from 3:34:

About The Author

Scott Lucas

Scott Lucas is Professor of International Politics at the Clinton Institute, University College Dublin; Professor Emeritus of International Politics at the University of Birmingham; and editor-in-chief of EA WorldView. He is a specialist in US and British foreign policy and international relations, especially the Middle East and Iran. Formerly he worked as a journalist in the US, writing for newspapers including the Guardian and The Independent and was an essayist for The New Statesman before he founded EA WorldView in November 2008.

2 Comments

CatMari on January 27, 2026 at 13:11

“Iran’s coming reckoning: Regime collapse is likely — democracy is not” – nuanced analysis by Siamak Namazi on:
– Why the status quo cannot hold
– Why 1979 is the wrong analogy
– What could follow the end of the Khamenei era
– Where the real hope for a democratic Iran lies
Read here: https://mei.edu/commentary/irans-coming-reckoning-regime-collapse-is-likely-democracy-is-not/
Reply
- Anonymous on January 27, 2026 at 14:27
  
  Oh, yes. We need to learn “democracy” from yemen, syria and iran. Why did you not say that before? Is that you reza??
  Reply