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Ibraham Raisi and the Politics of Martyrdom
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State Department whistleblower J. Michael Springmann and I discussed the Axis of Resistance’s defeat of Israel on the new False Flag Weekly News. Below is my new essay on a related topic, scheduled for translation and publication in Iran... -KB
Ibraham Raisi and the Politics of Martyrdom
By Kevin Barrett
On May 19, Iran lost one of its all-time greatest leaders—which is saying something, since that proud ancient nation has had plenty of leaders since it was first unified in 625 BC. President Ibrahim Raisi’s death in a helicopter crash shocked the world and evoked massive outpourings of mourning across the country. Millions of people poured into the streets of Tabriz, Qom, Jamkaran, Birjand, and Mashhad, and millions more followed the funeral demonstrations on social media.
President Raisi had assumed the presidency at a difficult time for Iran. He took office in June, 2021, almost a year and a half after the great general and likely future president, Qasem Soleimani, was martyred by a US military drone. Raisi’s predecessor, Hassan Rouhani, had devoted his presidency to fruitlessly striving to improve relations with the United States. Rouhani’s thanks was to have the JCPOA nuclear deal, the signature achievement of the Iran’s West-leaning reformist faction, rudely shredded by Donald Trump and the Netanyahu-loyalist faction of the American deep state, which subsequently murdered Gen. Soleimani under Zionist orders.
So by June 2021, the Iranian people understood that the USA is, as Putin puts it, “non-agreement-capable.” They elected President Raisi to put an end to the Rouhani era of pointless appeasement, and inaugurate a new era in which Iran would calmly but firmly stand up for its own interests, and for the interests of oppressed people in the region and across the world.
President Raisi did not disappoint. On the contrary, he wildly exceeded expectations. Under his leadership, Iran became a full member of the BRICS alliance and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. By deepening ties with Russia, China, and other relatively independent world powers, Raisi’s Iran not only improved its economic prospects, but also strengthened its defenses.
While deepening Iranian integration into BRICS, President Raisi had the wisdom to seek improved relations with Iran’s Persian Gulf neighbors, including the often-problematic Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. By working with Russia and China to gradually wean the region from US hegemony, the Iranian president helped create a blueprint for regional peace “without America and Israel.” That project, while it remains a work in progress, is clearly en route to full realization.
The Raisi administration managed to improve ties with former adversaries even as it strengthened the so-called Axis of Resistance nations and groups. It accelerated military support and technology transfer to Iran’s allies in the region, including sending rapidly-advancing drone and missile technologies to Yemen’s Ansarallah movement, Iraq’s Katā’ib Hezbollah, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, while increasing military support for Hamas and Islamic Jihad in occupied Palestine.
President Raisi’s two-pronged approach of healing Iran’s brea