Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei: Iran regime on borrowed time, but meddling could backfire
Swapan Dasgupta
Updated: Jun 28, 2025, 19:36 IST IST
Despite Iran's claims of victory, a recent conflict revealed significant vulnerabilities, with Israel inflicting substantial damage on military capabilities and key symbolic targets.
In his first pronouncement since the ceasefire — what the regime is celebrating as the 'divine victory' — Iran's ageing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei revealed that 'the Zionist entity has almost collapsed under the attacks of the Islamic Republic of Iran .' According to his understanding, 'The US intervened in the war because it felt if it did not do so, the Zionist entity would be completely wiped out.'
The glaring mismatch between how Tehran has projected the outcome of its confrontation with Israel and the US, and how the 12-day war is being viewed elsewhere, may well prompt despair among those anxious to see Iran's return to 'normal' existence. The conventional wisdom is that defeat prompts revolution.
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