Will the people’s revolution bring down Iran’s Ayatollahs?
While Iranians risk their lives to topple a theocratic regime, much of the West seems preoccupied with celebrity tantrums and hollow activism.
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Tonight, Ezra highlights how something genuinely historic appears to be unfolding in Iran. Despite internet blackouts, power cuts and brutal repression, ordinary Iranians are flooding the streets demanding the end of nearly half a century of rule by the Ayatollahs. This is not a symbolic protest or a passing riot. It looks, increasingly, like a full-blown uprising driven by economic collapse, water shortages and a population exhausted by clerical tyranny.
The Islamic Republic is responding with the usual tools of fear: mass killings, information blackouts and collective punishment. Reports suggest thousands may already be dead. Yet the protests persist. Even mosques, once the backbone of regime authority, are reportedly empty or being attacked ... a sign of how deeply the regime has hollowed out religious life.
What’s striking, though, is the muted reaction from Western elites. When Hamas fought Israel, celebrities, students and activists poured into the streets of London, Toronto and New York. Now, as Iranians fight an actual Islamist dictatorship, that same crowd is largely silent. There are no trending hashtags, no celebrity anthems, no mass encampments. The contrast is revealing.
Which brings us to Zara Larsson.
The Swedish pop star recently decided to inform her nearly ten million Instagram followers that she “effing hates” ICE, the US immigration enforcement agency. From the comfort of Scandinavia, she accused American law enforcement of being violent criminals, even as she prepares to tour the United States and rely on the very visa system she mocks.
It’s not brave. It’s not insightful. It’s cheap moral posturing aimed at an audience conditioned to applaud any denunciation of American authority. Foreign celebrities are free to hold opinions, but entry into the United States is a privilege, not a right. The idea that someone can openly demonise U.S. institutions and then expect a red-carpet welcome reflects how accustomed America has become to being sneered at.
The irony is hard to miss. While Iranians are risking everything to overthrow a real police state, Western celebrities casually attack democratic enforcement agencies from a position of total safety. One struggle is existential. The other is performative.
Perhaps it’s time the West learned to tell the difference.
GUEST: Middle East Forum's Daniel Pipes on the ongoing uprising in Iran and President Trump's potential response.
COMMENTS
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Fran g commented 2026-01-14 14:47:48 -0500Its hard to know what the truth is now adays with all the propaganda and ai. However it makes sense to me that Russia and China would have ships around Greenland for awhile now, especially since Trump talking so much about it the last year. I believe him. -
Angela Watt commented 2026-01-14 11:49:48 -0500There are no ships around Greenland from Russia or China. I don’t know why Trump is saying that there is. It’s giving people the wrong impression since lying seems to be the area of the Democrats. If Trump starts lying about stuff like this Greenland thing, all is lost for everyone because no one will believe anything politicians say. (not that anyone believes everything anyway). Just sayin… -
Angela Watt commented 2026-01-14 11:04:40 -0500I sincerely hope that this is the end of the regime because they’re protested before, loss of life etc., and nothing was done to help them. They need the help now. I fear that the regime will simply kill the protesters & continue on. Why is the West sitting on their hands? The Western countries are showing their weakness and that’s how Islamists & Communists will take over. Apathy has a price. After all is said & done, the communists & Islamists will fight amongst themselves in Russia in 1917 and the Islamists won. They’ll win again because they admire death. This is what is wanted & our politicians are too stupid to see it. They WILL BE THE FIRST ONES WHO WILL “DISAPPEAR” which is why this whole idea is so ridiculous, all for the sake of power & control.
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Michael I Buckley commented 2026-01-14 08:25:05 -0500Iran’s history is a continuous interplay of empire, culture, religion, and geopolitics—one of the world’s oldest civilizations still shaping global affairs. What will replace the current theoracy?
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Monique Rheault Carlson commented 2026-01-13 22:51:50 -0500No, do not let Zara in the States!
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Bruce Atchison commented 2026-01-13 20:46:57 -0500I’m hoping and praying that Iran’s fall will be bloodless. Unlike the collapse of the Soviet Union, Iran could become fragmented with Islamist hold-outs in remote regions trying to regain power. Remember too how fickle people can be.
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Naida Traviza commented 2026-01-13 20:30:23 -0500The ignorance of these young rock stars is astounding. But she’s from Sweden. This lady, if she was raped by an Illegal Muslim migrant would probably blame her society as being the reason for this man being pushed to do his crime.
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Bernhard Jatzeck commented 2026-01-13 20:23:48 -0500I remember watching the news about what happened after Khomeini returned to Iran. The patterns are similar. The turning point for the Shah was when the military and police changed sides and opposed him. It’s coming close to that now.
