For over a month, Israeli and US strikes have targeted every major city and province across Iran. As of 13 April, the Iranian Red Crescent has confirmed 2,076 deaths, overwhelmingly of civilians, but the real figure is much higher as many are buried under rubble.
Originally published on Marxist.com on 20th April 2026.
Despite claims by Israel and America that they are only targeting military assets and regime facilities, over 924 schools and 30 universities have been damaged or destroyed. In total, between 22,000 and 40,000 commercial units and between 92,000 and 115,000 homes have been destroyed, leaving over 3.2 million people internally displaced in Iran.
Iran’s industrial capacity has been targeted, including every major steelworks in Isfahan, Ahvaz, and Mahshahr. They have even targeted pharmaceutical plants that are crucial for Iran and cannot be easily rebuilt. Since the beginning of the US and Israeli attacks, Tehran has been hit the hardest. Intensive US-Israeli bombing has led to power and water shortages. In addition, food inflation, which was 79 percent just prior to the war, has risen in a single month to over 100 percent. This has created a nightmare for the masses.
The imperialists have also damaged or directly hit 132 historical sites. Among them are Golestan Palace in Tehran, Chehel Sotoun in Isfahan, and Falak-ol-Aflak in Khorramabad.
Yet attacking these targets has done nothing to significantly weaken Iran militarily. All the signs are that the military balance of forces is tipping more and more towards Iran. According to Haaretz, at the start of the war, five percent of Iranian missiles got through Israeli air defences. Now, 27 percent of missiles are getting through, most of which are cluster munitions.
Far from bringing the Iranian regime to the brink of collapse – or overthrow – as the US and Israel hoped, this imperialist aggression has only served to strengthen it. During the January-February protests, in which the Iranian state massacred thousands, the regime failed to gather mass crowds of support, and had to use deceptive angles and AI to inflate the attendance of its rallies.
But now, the situation has changed completely. The regime is now capable of genuinely rallying large crowds against American and Israeli imperialism, including layers that would have been hostile to the regime months earlier. There have been over 850 rallies since the war began, ranging in attendance from the thousands to the tens of thousands.
After offers by the Americans and Israelis to sponsor risings by the ethnic minority groups, we’ve seen rallies in the Azeri regions emphasising that they are an inseparable part of Iran. Anti-monarchist slogans were raised, such as “Azerbaijan is honourable, Pahlavi is dishonourable.”
In Ahvaz – in southwestern Iran – crowds chanted “Death to Pahlavi!” Popular nationalist songs have also featured heavily, such as “Ey Iran”, “Az Khoon-e Javanan-e Vatan”, and “Vatanam”. These songs were previously either controversial or banned by the regime, and, indeed, the last-named song was often sung during the anti-regime protests only a few months ago.
To prove the mass support that stands behind it in the struggle against imperialism, the regime has made a point of interviewing unveiled women, which is a marked shift in the government’s approach. This is not just regime propaganda. Many more unveiled women are attending government rallies.
This does not mean they have suddenly embraced the regime or forgotten its terrible crimes; rather, they are rightfully fearful for their own survival and Iran’s continued existence.
Since the start of the war, the Iranian government has initiated an anti-espionage crackdown, which it has justified as being to root out Israeli spies. They have made over 1,700 arrests and carried out 17 executions since the start of the war. A third of these have been under anti-espionage laws passed last year, following the 12-Day War.
Of course, the regime has used this as cover to repress opponents who have nothing to do with Israel, whom they tar as collaborators. But they are able to do so precisely because many Iranians see such repression as a necessary evil to stave off imperialism, because this infiltration by Israel is very real.
It is well documented that Israeli agents are operating in Iran – and that they have infiltrated even the upper echelons of the regime itself. We’ve seen this dirty war conducted clearly in the 12-Day War, with the waves of assassinations. Indeed, Mossad bragged it had agents on the ground during January’s protests. The imperialists, who shed crocodile tears for the victims of repression in Iran, have given the Islamic Republic all the opportunities it needs to repress its enemies.
Nationalism and the regime
Donald Trump completely miscalculated when he began this war. The idea that the assassination of high-ranking officials, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, would lead to the collapse of the state or its subordination to the interests of US and Israeli imperialism was out of touch with reality and the nature of the regime.
After the horror of the Iran-Iraq War – which forged the Islamic Republic – and a century of humiliation, oppression and exploitation by the imperialists, the sole source of legitimacy for the Islamic Republic was its ability to ensure the independence of Iran.
It is true that since 2018, the Islamic Republic has faced a profound crisis characterised by boycotts of the regime’s sham elections, persistent strikes, and almost annual uprisings. A significant portion of the population, particularly the youth, had lost faith in the Islamic Republic and its proxies abroad.
For the Iranian masses, the regime’s hypocrisy is clear: they call for resistance against western sanctions while lining their own pockets, ensuring their children live in a state of excess that mirrors the lives of western elites.
Yet the destruction and murder committed by the US and Israel, along with Trump’s threats to destroy Iran, have caused a visceral reaction, rallying the population behind the defence of the nation.
Iranians are immensely proud of their culture and history. This is warranted. Iranian culture goes back two millennia and has made countless contributions to humanity in architecture, science and literature. For a proud people, subordination to imperialism has meant humiliation after humiliation.
Over a century of struggle against imperialism and foreign intervention is what has truly forged modern Iran, more so than any of the region’s ancient empires. The western imperialists have a dark history of attempting to carve up Iran, meddling in its politics, facilitating coups and empowering tyrants.
Former Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, overthrown by the 1979 Iranian Revolution, was the last of these western stooges, known for his cruelty and nauseating opulence, made possible by his imperialist backers.
But the 1979 Iranian Revolution was itself swiftly hijacked by the Islamists, led by Khomeini, who secured power with the active assistance of American imperialism. When this new regime proved uncooperative, the US backed a failed coup in 1980 and then supported Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Iran – a war which claimed the lives of one million Iranians.
The Islamic regime has always based itself on the anti-imperialism of the Iranian masses, and has always issued a twisted version of this. They are a capitalist regime and do not aspire to overthrow imperialism as such, but rather want to be accepted by the imperialists as a legitimate power in the Middle East. Yet they still know how to connect with the mood of the masses, for example by referring to the current war as the ‘third imposed war’, after the Iraq-Iran War and the 12-Day War. They are experts at producing highly effective anti-imperialist propaganda for a western audience, as can be seen from their Lego-themed social media videos.
The regime has also understood that its typical Islamist anti-imperialist rhetoric has little appeal outside its usual hardcore supporters, who have continuously backed the regime throughout its crisis, which began in 2018. They have instead attempted to widen their base by incorporating secular nationalism, talking of the ‘defence of the nation’, even going so far as to use references to Iran’s pre-Islamic past.
This incorporation of secular nationalist rhetoric began at the time of the 12-Day War. In November, in Revolution Square in Tehran, the regime erected a statue of the fourth-century Sasanian ruler Shapur the Great. This would have been unthinkable previously, and is probably the first statue of a Shah erected in decades, let alone a pagan Shah. This is the same regime which discussed bulldozing all pre-Islamic sites in the 1980s.
There is a certain shift occurring in the regime, seen in the fact that the hijab law is no longer being strictly enforced, even at the regime’s own rallies. This has possibly been sharpened by the Israeli-American assassinations of senior officials, as turnover within the regime means that the leadership no longer comes from the generation that led the revolution and Iraq-Iran War.
Again, ironically, Israeli-American aggression may end up having the direct opposite result of that intended. The masses are being rallied for a national war of defence against US-Israeli aggression, and on this basis, the regime is attempting to renew itself. The details and implications of this will only become clear once the dust completely settles.
Reza Pahlavi – “the loser prince”
While the Iranian masses are being hailed with bombs, the exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi has been cheering on the imperialists.
Throughout the protests and the war itself, Trump has refused to meet with Pahlavi. When pressed on why this is the case, he said, “somebody from within would be more appropriate [to lead Iran],” and “I don’t know how he’d play within his own country”. It has been reported by The New Yorker that Trump and his aides refer to Pahlavi as the “loser prince”, after American intelligence confirmed he has no serious support in Iran.
During the current war, he has shed no tears and has not made a single statement regarding the murder of Iranian civilians. Following the US bombing of the Minab school that killed 168 children, he was silent. Yet he offered his condolences to the American soldiers who died participating in the bombing of Iran.
The most ridiculous episode was the fake interview with Reza Pahlavi conducted by Russian pranksters Vovan and Lexus, who presented themselves as aides to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Like a madman, Reza Pahlavi talked of opening Iran to western exploitation and called on Germany to join the “crusade” – a remarkable choice of words. The regime gladly broadcast these treasonous statements to the Iranian population.
Any confused elements in the diaspora, who were not convinced monarchists but previously supported Reza Pahlavi for want of an alternative, have now rapidly abandoned him, leaving behind only the mostly rabid reactionary monarchists. The war has finished him off inside Iran.
Regime change
In order to save face, Trump and the other imperialist cannibals have claimed that the assassination of Ali Khamenei and his replacement by his son constitutes regime change. This is ridiculous. The reformist and moderate factions, who supported negotiations and concessions to the West, have been completely discredited by the duplicity of American imperialism in the negotiations.
When Mohammad Javad Zarif – the former foreign minister linked to the reformist-moderates – penned an article arguing for limited concessions to the Americans, there were calls from within the base of the regime for his arrest as a traitor, and even his execution. Most Iranians would probably agree with these sentiments to one degree or another. Many would agree that compromise with imperialism constitutes treason. They will not accept a return to subjugation to imperialism after the destruction Iran has suffered. For millions, victory must mean an end to American sanctions and constant intervention. They want permanent peace and stability, not a pause in which the imperialists prepare their next aggression.
In the past, both factions – so-called ‘moderates’ and ‘hardliners’ alike – were loathed by the masses for their corruption and hypocrisy. Their power struggles changed nothing for the people. However, the situation has shifted, at least regarding foreign policy. The hardline principalists, particularly within the IRGC, have long warned against negotiations with the West – and they have now been proven correct.
The existential threat posed by the war goals of the US and Israel leaves the regime with no choice but to pursue serious demands: the lifting of all primary, secondary, and UN sanctions; the withdrawal of US forces from the region; an end to all attacks on Iran and its allies; and reparations for war losses. In their arrogance and wishful thinking for a quick victory, the imperialists have empowered hardline elements ready for confrontation, with the masses largely rallying behind them.
Death to American imperialism! Death to capitalism!
The fall of the Islamic Republic through imperialist war and regime change would represent the most reactionary possible outcome in this war. It would have the potential to end in a Syria-type situation, leading to barbarism across the region. That, in fact, is the war aim of the Israelis!
The defeat and humiliation of American imperialism in this war, on the contrary, would mark a step forward for the working class worldwide. The brazen disregard shown by Israeli and American imperialism for the supposed ‘rules-based order’ – including Trump’s declaration that he would erase Iranian civilisation – have served to expose their hypocritical system. A full-on defeat would weaken the ability of these imperialists to intervene elsewhere, and it would accelerate revolutionary developments in the US itself.
But we stand for the defeat of the US and Israel for another reason. It is the precondition for an independent class movement of the Iranian workers.
The intervention of US-Israeli imperialism has strengthened the regime for now. The working class may not like the regime, but they are prepared to put up with it as long as the greater threat of imperialist dismemberment looms.
Only once the possibility of imperialist meddling is defeated will the working class feel confident to stand up to the regime without feeling that they are courting disaster.
After the war, the Iranian working class will find that it faces the same problems as it faced before the war, only multiple times worse: the existential threat of drought, disgusting corruption, inequality, the extreme exploitation of the masses, and the regime’s brutal oppression. On top of this, this war will leave Iran in ruins. Any reconstruction will be riddled with the corruption and brutal exploitation that are endemic to Iranian capitalism.
This does not mean an uprising will be imminent even after an American defeat. The masses are weary from their many uprisings since 2018, as well as the two imperialist interventions. The reactionary consequences of American-Israeli aggression will outlive the war itself. The Islamic Republic has won authority that it will use to paper over its failures for a time. And the masses will be prepared to endure a certain amount of sacrifice as Iran is rebuilt. But they will discover that under capitalism, that sacrifice will not be shared equally.
After defeating the world’s most powerful imperialist power, the working class of Iran, with its rich and inspiring revolutionary traditions, will find its confidence again and begin to place its demands at the fore once again. Imperialist vandalism cannot alter the fact that the future of Iran and the whole of humanity lies in the socialist revolution.