Millions out on the streets of Iran and against Trump

Trump’s war on Iran has exposed weaknesses in US hegemony (Photo: WikipediaCommons)

Donald Trump wanted millions in the streets of Washington DC last weekend celebrating 250 years of the US.

Instead, he was met with millions on the streets of Tehran, the Iranian capital, calling for his death.

When Trump and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched the war on Iran in February, they were confident that the regime would fall quickly.

In January, the Iranian regime had slaughtered protesters on the streets opposing skyrocketing prices.

They were part of a cycle of revolt over neoliberalism and authoritarianism that showed how the regime was losing its legitimacy.

Flash forward, millions of people were out mourning former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and waving red flags of revenge.

The US and Israel were never going to bring liberation—and, far from weakening the regime, they have bolstered its position.

Socialist Worker stands for the military defeat of the US and Israel in their war on Iran.

When Iranian rockets fell on US military bases and Israel, we were among the people cheering.

But that doesn’t mean socialists should give political support for the Iranian regime. It is not a principled or consistent “anti-imperialist” force—and the situation in Gaza is a reminder.

Hamas, the Palestinian national liberation organisation, announced this week that it would transfer authority to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG).

The NCAG describes itself as a “transitional, technocratic and apolitical Palestinian committee”, but was set up under Trump’s colonial land grab in January.

The Palestinian resistance has not dissolved itself and it has not disarmed. And why should it when Israel, the aggressor, has not?

But that remains the demand of the US and Israel.

The Palestinian resistance has fought like lions in Gaza, but Hamas’ strategy still relied on support from states in the region.

Qatar, which hosted Hamas’ political leadership, has put pressure on the group.

After Israel bombed Qatar last summer, Trump used it as an opportunity to promise closer military cooperation with the US.

In negotiations, the Iranian regime said the US and Israel had to stop their offensives across the region.

But Palestine was never on the table in these talks.

The Iranian regime is hoping to reintegrate into the global system on more favourable terms and put its own interests first.

The road to liberation of Palestine does not lie with any “anti-imperialist” regime in the region.

It lies with millions of workers and the poor challenging imperialism, neoliberalism and their own rulers.

• Read more in Socialist Worker’s new pamphlet, Iran: War, Resistance, and Revolution. Available at socialistworker.co.uk/shop