If Ayatollah Once…

A protester in Tehran waves an Iranian flag in front of a billboard depicting Donald Trump and the Strait of Hormuz, May 5, 2026. By Romesh Ratnesar As Donald Trump’s ill-considered war on Iran slouches toward an endgame, spare a thought for the conflict’s biggest losers: the Iranian people. In early January, amid a crackdown on anti-regime demonstrations, Trump urged Iranians to “KEEP PROTESTING…. HELP IS ON THE WAY!” The U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign that began on February 28 succeeded in eliminating dozens of top officials, including Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. But the regime remains in power, still wielding its tools of repression. In the last three months, at least 35 political prisoners have been executed, the Internet has gone dark, and food and water READ ON