US must bolster anti-drone capabilities to counter Iran's threats - lawmaker

Hassan Hassanzadeh, the commander of Tehran’s Mohammad Rasoulollah IRGC base, told local media that the trend of declining participation has intensified since the fall of Iran’s ally, Bashar al-Assad, in Syria. In a rare admission, he acknowledged that many IRGC and Basij members did not respond to calls to join what was intended to be a 110,000-strong drill.

However, the actual participation figure remains uncertain, as Hassanzadeh also said that “According to preliminary figures I have received, at least 27,000 Afghan brothers and sisters residing in Iran have filled out the participation form for the drills.”

Hassanzadeh, referring to what he described as a trend of non-cooperation by IRGC and Basij members with IRGC programs, stated: "Unfortunately, many of our colleagues who have had the honor of serving in the Basij and the IRGC have either declined to participate for various reasons or have not yet given a definitive response. This is a trend that we have seen increase since the events in Syria."

The event appeared more like a parade through the streets of the capital than a military drill intended to prepare for the defense of Tehran. Many Iranians on social media suggested that the exercise was aimed more at intimidating residents and deterring anti-government protests than preparing for a potential foreign attack.

The participants included anti-riot forces riding in groups of motorcyclists, a formation commonly used during protests. Typically, two men share each motorbike, with the passenger armed with clubs or chains to strike protesters.

The event also featured men carrying cardboard cutouts of “martyrs,” such as former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, killed by Israel, and Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, assassinated in Tehran last year. Heavily armed IRGC forces were present, carrying assault rifles and riding in pick-up trucks mounted with heavy machine guns. Some participants, dressed as early Islamic warriors, brandished oversized swords—all these displays seemingly intended to intimidate the public.

An official IRGC announcement highlighted the distribution of free food to all participants, along with a few hundred “wedding gift packages” for supporters preparing to get married. In Iran, free food handed out at such events is commonly referred to as “sandis,” a term often used humorously. Those who attend government-organized gatherings solely for the freebies are mockingly called “Sandiskhor,” or freeloaders.

Iran International analyst, Morad Veisi pointed out before the event that “The timing of the drill coincides with political shifts in the US, including the return of Donald Trump to the White House, and a weakening of Tehran’s regional position, which have raised concerns within the Islamic Republic’s ruling circles.”

Officials say the closures, which necessitated online schooling, aim to manage dwindling resources.

Hassan Mousavi, spokesperson for the National Iranian Gas Company, said gas consumption on January 10 rose significantly compared to the same day last year.

“605 million cubic meters of natural gas were allocated to the residential, commercial, and small-scale industrial sectors on Friday, which represents a 10 percent increase compared to the same period last year,” he added.

Tehran Province completely shut down its government offices, with similar closures reported in provinces like Isfahan, Fars, and Qom in central and southern Iran, as well as in two northeastern provinces and several in the northwest and north.

This is not the first time such measures have been implemented. Recent weeks have seen similar shutdowns in Tehran and other provinces, often linked to air pollution or energy crises.

Mohammad Sadegh Mo'tamedian, Governor of Tehran, remarked last month that such moves merely “shift the crisis from one point to another.”

The crisis has revived memories of the summer, when nationwide blackouts due to insufficient power generation led to significant disruptions. With no immediate solutions in sight, Abbas Aliabadi, Minister of Energy, recently acknowledged the gravity of the situation.

“The gas shortage is a reality,” Aliabadi told parliamentarians on January 5, adding, “It cannot be resolved within two months.”

Aliabadi spoke about a shortage of 20,000 megawatts of electricity and a difficult summer ahead, adding: "Let’s hope this doesn't happen because while the cold of winter can be managed by wearing warm clothing, navigating the conditions of summer is not that simple."

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has repeatedly described the situation as dire. “In critical areas—electricity, water, gas, the environment, and finance—we are on the edge of a precipice,” he warned.

Although Iranian officials insist that energy consumption is rising, the country is in the midst of an economic crisis. The main issue is declining production in Iran's main gas fields in the Persian Gulf, where natural gas pressure is falling and tens of billions of dollars in new investment and technology are needed.

Iran's energy shortage is primarily driven by a combination of outdated infrastructure, inefficient energy consumption, and a lack of investment in modern technologies. The country's power grid, gas pipelines, and energy generation plants often operate at or near full capacity, making them vulnerable to failures and inefficiencies.

The ongoing US sanctions have limited access to foreign technology and investment, preventing the country from modernizing its energy systems.

Other contributing factors include the increasing demand for electricity during hot summers and cold winters, alongside insufficient efforts to develop alternative renewable energy sources. The over-reliance on fossil fuels for both electricity generation and heating exacerbates the issue, while Iran's ability to manage energy demand through strategic planning and conservation has remained limited.

Officials have launched conservation initiatives, including a campaign titled “Two Degrees Less Consumption.” Despite this, the challenges of balancing demand with supply persist, raising concerns about Iran’s ability to cope with the energy crisis both in winter and during the hotter summer months ahead.

The statement followed a meeting on Friday between Kazem Jalali, Iran's Ambassador to Moscow, and Andrey Rudenko, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister. Russia, confirming the meeting, said: "Current issues on the bilateral agenda were discussed, including upcoming high-level contacts," as quoted by Tass.

The initiative comes after both Iran and Russia lost their key Middle Eastern ally, Bashar al-Assad of Syria, last month, when Islamic insurgents swept down from the north and seized Damascus within days.

Discussing the specifics of the deal, Jalali told Iran's state-run Young Journalists Club (YJC), "The independence and security of our country, as well as self-reliance, are crucial elements, and we are not particularly inclined to align ourselves with any specific bloc."

"National independence is of great importance to the Islamic Republic of Iran. After all, we have been paying the price for it for 45 years," he added in an article published Saturday.

Last week, government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani also told Sputnik that Iran expects to sign a comprehensive cooperation agreement with Russia on January 17, during President Masoud Pezeshkian's visit to Moscow.

Mohajerani told the media that the president's upcoming visit to Moscow is expected to advance two major initiatives: "The North-South Corridor, which is already underway, and the plan to transfer Russian gas to Iran—both of which have been key points of agreement between the two sides."

Tehran and Moscow first signed a long-term agreement in March 2001, officially titled the Treaty of the Foundation of Mutual Relations and the Principles of Cooperation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation Act. Initially set for ten years, it was extended twice for five-year terms.

Despite similar announcements about a new agreement since 2020, a renewed treaty has yet to be finalized.

According to Iran’s ambassador to Russia, the two countries agreed in 2021 to extend the treaty for another five years, with its expiration now set for 2026.

In 2023, reports suggested potential challenges in developing a new agreement with Russia, although few details about its content have been made public.

Some commentators in Iran have criticized Russia for the fall of Iran's ally, Bashar al-Assad, noting that Moscow failed to provide sufficient support when insurgents advanced toward Damascus. Ataollah Mohajerani, a government-aligned analyst, wrote in Etemad daily on Saturday that Russia could similarly abandon the Islamic Republic if its interests demanded it.

The Islamic Republic also has a long-term agreement with China, though its details remain undisclosed. Throughout its 45-year standoff with the United States and the accompanying international isolation, Tehran has consistently sought to deepen its cooperation with Moscow and Beijing.

"Through the continuous efforts of the anonymous soldiers of Imam Mahdi, members of a spy network tied to the intelligence service of a Persian Gulf country were apprehended on Friday," said a statement from the Public Relations Office of the Vali-e-Asr Corps in Khuzestan Province on Saturday.

The statement added that the arrested individuals had been gathering sensitive information from critical facilities in the province. They have been handed over to judicial authorities for further action.

The IRGC and Iran's Ministry of Intelligence have frequently announced the discovery and dismantling of alleged spy or terrorist cells. However, such claims are rarely accompanied by publicly available evidence, follow-up reports, or public trials, making independent verification impossible.

“He [Carter] did all he could to push the Shah out without thinking who would replace him,” General Brigadier Yitzhak Segev told Iran International. “Carter spoke against the Shah and criticized him.”

"I'm not saying the regime of the Shah was good or not corrupt. I am not saying Savak was good also, but every time you must think about how to continue or who will be the replacement," Segev added, referring to the late monarch Mohammed Reza Pahlavi's feared spy agency.

Segev served as military attaché in Iran from 1977 to 1979, escaping after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned to Iran in February 1979 in a triumphant defeat of the Shah, who had announced he was going on "vacation".

Segev provided his eye-witness accounts, conversations and observations from the years leading to the revolution and its aftermath.

As an elite officer in the Israeli military, Segev had direct conversations with Carter and American, Iranian and Israeli government and military officials in the run-up to the Islamic revolution that transformed the monarchy into an Islamic theocracy.

While Segev said he respects Carter, praising him as a human rights trailblazer and statesman for his role in the Camp David Accords that brought peace between Egypt and Israel, he said the Democratic president let Iran down.

“His treatment of Iran was catastrophic.”

Carter’s role in Iran is a lightning rod of controversy. Many in the Iranian diaspora flocked to social media when learning of Carter’s death on Dec. 29 to again blame him for the rise of Khomeini.

Segev, who continued to have friendly relations with Carter after the 1979 revolution, said the late president believed the end of the Shah’s 37-year reign and 2500 years of monarchy in Iran would lead to democracy.

Carter’s championing of democracy and human rights drove that belief, in Segev’s view. The Americans, he said, naively thought Khomeini, an anti-communist, would protect American interests and felt the Shah had already lost control of the country and was doomed.

General Robert Husyer was dispatched to Tehran as a US envoy in 1979 on a secret mission to meet with the Iranian army, according to Segev, in an account corroborated by declassified US documents and a Husyer's memoir.

“Instead of coming to the army and building confidence with the army or promoting a replacement from the army or civilian (leadership) that would keep relations with America and the West, he really pushed for democracy,” Segev told Eye for Iran.

It would later be revealed that many of these Iranian generals were planning their defection and some even joined the anti-Shah movement.

Husyer in his memoir said Carter’s administration had not ruled out US support for a coup. According to Husyer’s memoir and Segev’s recollections, Zbigniew Brzezinski, the national security advisor, advocated for immediate action but Cyrus Vance, the secretary of state, opposed a coup.

“Brzezinski wanted [his order] to convey to the Iranian military a green light to stage a military coup. President Carter intended it to convey such a meaning only as a last resort,” Huyser wrote in this memoir.

Within the US government, officials were divided about what to do about its flailing Mideast ally amid backdrop of the Cold War.

Carter’s quest for democracy may have blinkered him on Khomeini’s true intentions, Segev said, and the prevailing threat to the Americans at the time was communism.

“The unusual story is that before Khomeini landed President Carter called the president of France and the president of Germany and told them: ‘don't worry, I checked about Khomeini and he is not communist’,” Segev said.

The BBC published a report in 2016 based on declassified US diplomatic cables saying Carter had contacts with Khomeini and his representatives in Tehran prior to his takeover.

Khomeini, who was in exile in Paris at the time, reportedly assured the Americans he would restore stability and that American interests would be protected in a series of letters he sent to Carter.

Islamic Republic officials have repeatedly denied any secret correspondence with a nation Khomeini referred to as the “great Satan.”

Officials who worked closely with Carter like Stuart Eizenstat, the president's chief domestic policy adviser, blame the Shah for the Islamic Republic's rise.

"Jimmy Carter did not lose Iran, the Shah did," Eizenstat said in a eulogy at the late president’s funeral on Thursday.

In attendance were President Joe Biden, President-elect Donald Trump and all other living former US presidents, making for a rare re-litigation of the hotly disputed events of 1979 before the country's most senior leaders.

Regrets?

A few years after the 1979 revolution, Segev met with President Carter and Cyrus Vance at a peace conference in Atlanta.

Curious about the Carter administration's conclusions after Khomeini had solidified power, he spoke to the former President and Vance, directly asking the latter if he had any regrets about US actions during the 1979 revolution.

“I told him: 'I must ask you. Now after the revolution, how do feel?' He told me that he felt big regret and it was a big mistake,” said Segev, who said he asked the same of Carter later that night.

“President Carter did not show any regret,” he said.

Israeli offer of help

In 1978, as anti-Shah sentiment was growing and spreading outside Iran's capital, the Israelis offered Tehran help.

Israeli military leader and politician Moshe Dayan and Segev met with Nematollah Nassiri, the head of Iran’s former intelligence agency Savak.

The meeting did not go as the Israeli officials had anticipated, Segev said.

“I remember the meeting now after 45 years like it happened yesterday,” he said.

“Nassiri’s son was on his leg and Dayan told him ‘General Nasiri, Segev told me that there are big demonstrations. I came here to offer you any help from Israel.’"

"Nasiri told him, ‘don't worry, everything is under control. We control the situation. We don't need anything. We have everything. But if you are here, let's talk about the war between Ethiopia and Somalia’,” said Segev.

Segev recalls leaving the meeting disappointed and said Dayan told him, "‘I'm ashamed to tell you this. Nassiri is senile. Let's leave him.’"

To learn more about Segev’s escape from Iran and his meeting with Ayatollah Mohammad Hossein Beheshti, one of the leaders of the Islamic Revolution, watch or listen to Eye for Iran Episode 33. You can watch on YouTube or Listen on Spotify, Apple, Amazon, Castbox or any major podcast platform.