The death of twenty-two-year-old Iranian girl Mahsa Amini while in custody of the Islamic Republic’s morality policy over inappropriate hijab has sparked an outrage in Iran and across the world. Millions of Iranians and others who support basic human rights have been outspoken about the Islamic republic’s acts and called for regime change in Iran. This comes at a time when the war in Ukraine is affecting gas supplies to Europe and western powers are attempting to revive the nuclear deal which risks further empowering the Islamic Republic, while gaining the West access to Iran’s gas supplies. This leaves Western powers in a difficult position whether to defend human rights and regime change in Iran or to work on the nuclear deal that could possibly serve their national interests in the short term.
Arab states have been mostly cautiously neutral towards developments in Iran on the official level, despite severely affected by the Islamic Republic’s actions for decades. While large numbers of Bahrainis and Arabs have been supportive of the Iranian uprising, some have voiced caution about what could come next if the Ayatollahs were forced out of power.
However, we wish the women and youth of Iran all the success in their revolution, a revolution that can finally bring them back to life and hopefully rid them and the world of the evil brought about by the Islamic Republic. Here is a look at what some Bahrainis think about the Iran revolution.
“The Iranian people deserve better”
“This is a movement against radicalism, brutality and the culture of hate impoverished by the Islamic Republic for decades. People all across the world need to realise that this movement should be supported, and action needs to be taken against the Islamic regime” Abdullah 31
“The regime in Iran is not one that will concede and bring about serious reforms. The leaders of the Islamic republic are terrorists and the Iranian people deserve better. They have to topple the regime and bring an end to this deprivation and mess caused by religious fanatics” Mariam 28
“The Iranians have had enough, and we have had enough of the Islamic Republic. I can only imagine how hard life is for the people of Iran, when we who are neighbours of the Islamic Republic have struggled to deal with them, their intervention in our affairs and their extremist ideology” Khalid 40
“More needs to be done by the GCC”
“Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have long known the Islamic republic and what it stands for. We have no embassy or any form of official relations with the Islamic Republic, hoping that other countries will follow, while understanding the threat the rulers of the Islamic Republic pose to their own people and people of the world.” Sarah 36
“Historically the whole region looked very different in the 1970s prior to the Islamic revolution. Radical Islam was not as spread as we see it today. Extremist groups from both sects of the Islamic faith came to rise as a result of the Islamic revolution, hence a progressive secular movement can change the whole region positively” Ahmed 38
“One can only think that this could be a recipe for disaster. No one expected the outcomes of the 1979 revolution and so we cannot predict how Iran would turn out to be if the protest movement succeeds in toppling the regime. Will this actually result in civil war or a disastrous so-called democracy, like the one we witness in Iraq, or will the Iranians truly be united and come up with a governing system that suits their diverse society?” Aisha 32
“The Gulf countries should do more to support the protesters in Iran. Bahrain has had first-hand experiences with the Islamic Republic’s aggressive policies. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been repeatedly attacked by the Iran supported Houthi rebels and Kuwait is also in a more weakened position sharing borders with Iraq which is considered Iran’s puppet. More needs to be done by the GCC to support the Iranian people and get rid of the regime” Salman 35
“The beginning of the end”
“The Iranian opposition is dismantled with leftists on one side, the Kurds, the supporters of the monarchy on the other and some other secular groups scattered around. This weakens their position. The protesters do not have a leader and so the Iranian opposition abroad should unite under one umbrella” Fatima 38
“It seems that most Iranians inside and outside Iran are supportive of this movement. They have come out in huge numbers all across the world to support the revolution. Khamenei is losing his game and the Ayatollahs will come to an end soon” Hamad 30
“This is the beginning of the end. It is not a protest movement; it is a revolution! Even if they do not succeed in toppling the regime in the coming few weeks, we all know that change is about to swipe through Iran at some point in the near future. They are brave and they should keep going” Hassan 27
“A movement for women”
“This is a regime that doesn’t mind killing and torturing people. They will kill the protesters by the thousands and not care what the international community will say or do. The Islamic republic is run by murderers and tyrants; therefore, we should be their voice to the world” Manal 42
“Above all, this is a movement started by women. It is a movement for women and basic human rights. We live in monarchies in the Gulf and no religious practices have been imposed on us. These are monarchies and not democracies however we are given our basic rights to dress the way we want. How can a republic be led by a Supreme leader that imposes a dress code on citizens? It is disturbing that women have to live this way in the twenty first century” Ali 35
“Let’s not forget that the Islamic Republic is a state sponsor of terror, it is part of the axis of evil. It is mostly responsible for proxy wars across the Middle East. Unfortunately leaders of the US, UK, the EU and others seem to have forgotten about all this. Statements of condemnation are not enough. Action needs to be taken against the Islamic republic” Mahmood 29
“America and the west seem to be turning a blind eye on the revolution in Iran. It is their desperate need for gas that is making them bow down to the Islamic republic through reviving the nuclear deal. The west should rescue the Iranian people instead of putting efforts into a deal that empowers the regime in Iran” Mona 37
“Mahsa Amini has become Iran’s George Floyd. The Iranians are hailed for trying to spread their word while their internet is being blocked and they’re being murdered on daily basis. Iranian women and youth are a to be saluted for standing against the Ayatollahs” Yousif 28
“Time for the regime to go”
“The protests in Iran are not just about a governing system. They are about defying an extremist ideology that has prevented people from thinking, dressing, speaking and moving freely. This ideology has spread to our countries in the past four decades. We see how religious processions are politicised in countries like Bahrain, how protest movements were hijacked by followers of this ideology. This is a fight to bring an end to religious extremism that has damaged the Iranian society and others” Abdulrahman 32
“The Islamic republic has exported its ideology to the region. Khomeini and his successor succeeded in brainwashing some Iranians and others in the region. To see that the women and people of Iran are defying this ideology and standing up for their rights is simply refreshing and promising” Amal 36
“Women’s rights, human rights, animal rights are all concepts that are foreign to the Ayatollahs in Iran. It is a country where you’re not even allowed to foster or adopt a dog and this is simply bizarre, you are not allowed to dress the way you want, practice another religion or sect, people are unemployed, unable to express their opinions freely, or even travel freely to other countries as their passport is among the least accepted by countries alongside the Afghan passport. This is how terrible it is to be a citizen of the Islamic republic, it’s time for the regime to go” Faisal 34