For over 4 decades, slogans like ‘Death to America’ and ‘Death to Israel’ have served as both political cover and ideological glue
By Hamid Enayat
Shortly before direct nuclear negotiations are set to begin between the U.S. and Iran in Oman, Tehran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has executed a dramatic political U-turn.
After publicly denouncing talks with Washington as “unwise, irrational and dishonorable” in a televised speech on March 2, he has now quietly agreed to sit at the same negotiating table. This abrupt reversal isn’t just a diplomatic maneuver – it reflects the regime’s acute fear of internal collapse.
With protests simmering amid economic hardship and a deepening water crisis, Tehran’s leadership is facing unprecedented domestic pressure. The fear of a looming uprising, combined with growing international resolve, has forced the regime into a corner.
Iran’s appalling global record on executions
According to Amnesty International, Iran was responsible for 64% of all recorded executions worldwide in 2024. That staggering figure reflects a deliberate strategy of mass repression, particularly after the regime lost key regional strongholds – including its strategic influence in Syria and Lebanon.
Khamenei once justified Tehran’s involvement in the Syrian conflict by declaring: “If we don’t fight there, we’ll have to fight here, inside Iran.” With that regional buffer eroded, the regime has turned its tools of suppression inward, accelerating executions to instill fear and deter dissent.