‘I’m an Iranian in Britain – this is why we’re pleased the regime is being attacked’

Iranian dissidents living in the UK claim that most people in their home country will have welcomed Israel’s attack on Iran, because it could weaken the state’s oppressive Islamic regime. 

Many British-Iranians remain concerned about the safety of their families and worry about how the conflict will escalate, after nuclear facilities and military leadership were targeted. 

Shiva Mahbobi, an activist who left Iran after being arrested and tortured as a teenager, acknowledged there were “mixed feelings” and that “no one is looking forward to a war”. 

But having spoken to contacts within the country, she said: “The majority are very happy that several high-ranking people in the regime were killed. We are talking about people who have been involved in killing people, suppressing people.” 

Among the dead are Hossein Salami, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and Mohammad Bagheri, chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces. 

The IRGC is a militia that helps the regime maintain power. It is sometimes compared by opponents to the Nazis’ elite SS, but also maintains extensive control over the country’s economy. 

British diplomats believe as few as 10 to 20 per cent of the Iranian population support the rule of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his dictatorship of fundamentalist Shia clerics.

Shiva Mahbobi has been a leading supporter of protests against the Iranian regime in recent years (Photos: Saeed Parto/Getty)

Rooftop bravery defies the regime

Mahbobi, who came to the UK in 2001 and is a spokesperson for the Campaign to Free Political Prisoners in Iran, said it was notable that instead of “hiding themselves” during the air strikes on Thursday night, many citizens “were on the rooftops and taking video clips.” 

She added: “They can be arrested for propaganda against the regime. But you can hear in some of these clips how outspoken people are… In many of them, people say that Khamenei should be killed more than anyone else.” 

She said that the regime clearly fears looking vulnerable at this time, after launching violent crackdowns on many demonstrations by pro-democracy campaigners over the last decade.  

“They sent text messages to many people, especially journalists, telling them that they are not allowed to talk about the attack on social media,” she said. “They put their security forces on the streets in Tehran and Esfahan because they were afraid of people protesting. 

“You would imagine in a normal country, the first act of the government would be supporting the people. But the government knows people inside Iran are against the regime, and they’re quite petrified of that.”

Iranian dissidents say people should not be worried by images of residential buildings that have been destroyed because only IRGC members would live in these secured locations (Photo: Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu)

Another Iranian exile in Britain, who did not wish to be named to avoid harassment by regime agents, said: “I had a conversation with people inside the Iran this morning, and they told me, ‘We were all celebrating, we were so happy, we had snacks while they were bombing.’” 

He added: “The message from the Israeli government is very clear: we are not your enemy, we have a common enemy: the Iranian regime.” 

Mahbobi underlined that does not support the Israeli government, because it is “killing innocent people in Gaza”. She believes the country’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is a “criminal” like the Palestinian group Hamas and the Iranian regime itself. 

She said that the Israeli government was “protecting their own interests” and it would be “naive” to think otherwise, but she hoped this action would lead other countries to put pressure on the regime by closing embassies and freezing assets. 

“Talks won’t work, because the regime in Iran is a mafia-like group. They don’t understand negotiation. They know threats, kidnapping, hostage taking and execution,” she added.

The Iranian government, which has consistently rejected suggestions that it is weak or unpopular at home, called the attacks a “declaration of war”. 

It said in a statement that Israel “does not adhere to any international rules or laws and, like a drunkard, openly and brazenly engages in terror and ignites the flames of war before the eyes of the world, including Westerners who claim to uphold human rights and international law”. 

The former crown prince of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, right, has called for Iranians to depose the country’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, left (Photos: Getty)

Shah’s son calls for uprising

Iran has recently been gripped by a 22-day strike by truck drivers, blocking roads and ports in protest at low pay and high costs. Opposition leaders say that more than 40 people have been arrested in actions affecting more than 150 towns and cities. 

Reza Pahlavi – the son of the last Shah, who has lived abroad since the 1979 revolution – has called for the Iranian people to rebel against their rulers. 

Pahlavi wrote online on Friday: “In their reckless pursuit of nuclear weapons, Ali Khamenei and his incompetent and criminal thugs have dragged Iran into a war and put the Iranian people in harm’s way. They are responsible. 

“But the regime is weak and divided. It could fall. As I have told my compatriots: Iran is yours and yours to reclaim. I am with you. Stay strong and we will win. I have told the military, police, and security forces: break from the regime.” 

Pahlavi’s father, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, led Iran as an absolutist monarchy with a notorious secret police force of its own, Savak, which tortured and executed thousands of people. 

The Shah was ousted in 1979 by a popular uprising, but this was swiftly hijacked by Islamist extremists, who used the power vacuum to seize power. 

His son, now 64, remains popular among many liberal Iranians living outside the country.