Khamenei insiders grapple with Iranian policy missteps

Lawmakers rejected the motion with 150 votes in favor, 73 against and nine abstentions out of 238 members present, Tasnim said. The proposal was sent to parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee for further review.

The bill was introduced by conservative lawmakers seeking to block implementation of Iran’s conditional approval to join the UN Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, one of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards that require countries to monitor and report financial transactions to curb money laundering and terror funding.

Earlier this month, Iran’s Expediency Council, which resolves disputes between parliament and the Guardian Council under Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, gave conditional approval for joining the treaty after years of delay. The council said implementation would depend on guarantees that Iran’s economic and security interests would not be compromised.

Hardline lawmakers argue that joining the convention could expose Iran’s financial channels used to bypass US sanctions and support regional allies such as Hezbollah and armed groups in Iraq and Yemen. They say Iran should only join once all sanctions are lifted.

Supporters of the treaty, including some moderate lawmakers and economic officials, argue that compliance with FATF standards could help reconnect Iran’s banking system to global financial networks and attract foreign investment amid a severe economic downturn.

During a cabinet meeting on Sunday afternoon, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said while Egypt’s invitation for Pezeshkian was declined, another invitation was extended to him instead.

Araghchi later said on his X account that he too will not attend the Sharm El-Sheikh summit.

"While favoring diplomatic engagement, neither President Pezeshkian nor I can engage with counterparts who have attacked the Iranian People and continue to threaten and sanction us," he said.

The summit will bring together leaders from twenty countries in a bid “to end the war in the Gaza Strip, strengthen efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East, and open a new chapter of regional security and stability,” according to the Egyptian presidency.

With Pezeshkian’s decision finalized, attention shifted to Araghchi. His potential participation could mark Tehran’s cautious engagement — signaling interest without fully endorsing the summit’s framework.

Had Araghchi accepted the invitation, Iran could define how it navigates its revolutionary identity while engaging with the emerging regional order shaped by the Trump-brokered Gaza ceasefire.

Tehran is split between those who view participation as a betrayal and those who see it as a diplomatic opportunity.

Many Iranians online pointed out that the decision to accept or reject such invitations ultimately depends on Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s approval, not the president.

Reformists call it ‘historic opportunity’

Moderates and reformists urged Pezeshkian to seize what they called a rare diplomatic opening.

Prominent reformist journalists Mohammad Mohajeri and Mohammad Ghoochani issued a joint statement urging Pezeshkian “not to miss this historic opportunity.” They argued attending would not signify recognition of Israel but align with Iran’s strategy of indirect negotiation. Their message: “If (the chance in) New York (during the UNGA summit) was lost, seize Sharm el-Sheikh.”

In a post on X, former diplomat Hamid Aboutalebi, a longtime adviser to ex-president Hassan Rouhani, called the reported US invitation as “a positive and welcome signal,” even if informal. “It shows a desire to return to dialogue and constructive engagement,” he said, suggesting it could pave the way for “direct and comprehensive talks.”

Aboutalebi stressed that Iran had “paid a heavy price for the Palestinian cause for over four decades” and should not be absent as results are achieved.
He continued: “Iran’s role must not end with resistance — it should extend to reconstruction and state-building. Staying out would waste our strategic investments in the Axis of Resistance.”

Reformist figure Ghorbanali Salavatian echoed that sentiment in a post on X, urging Tehran to send former foreign minister Javad Zarif if it participates: “The Sharm el-Sheikh summit should be seen as an opportunity. Let’s remember — Israel is not attending.”

“The West and the Islamic world have agreed on a plan for Gaza. Iran should attend, reaffirm its stance, and engage with the world.” Playing on the host city’s name, he warned: “Don’t turn ‘Sharm el-Sheikh’ into shame for the officials!” wrote user Hamed Hesari on X.

Hardliners warn of betrayal

Hardline figures vehemently oppose any participation, arguing that sitting at a table hosted by Donald Trump would mean “recognizing the Zionist regime, accepting the defeat of the Palestinian cause, and undermining Hamas.”

Abdollah Ganji, former editor-in-chief of the IRGC-linked Javan newspaper, dismissed moderates and reformists’ calls to attend as “a new show by naïve dreamers.”

Hardline user Mohammad Sajjad Parchami posted: “The leg of Pezeshkian — or anyone representing the government — who wants to attend Sharm el-Sheikh must be smashed.”

Strategic arguments

Some foreign policy experts also backed participation on pragmatic grounds.

Analyst Reza Nasri wrote in a post on X that three decades after being excluded from the Madrid peace process, this summit could be “a new beginning.” He warned that Iran’s absence would allow others to “shape arrangements unfavorable to both Iran and Palestine.”

Former ambassador Nosratollah Tajik added in a post on X: “Iran’s absence won’t heal the Palestinians’ pain. Participation, however, would signal a new behavioral model — a soft power card that can become a lever of influence.”

In their joint statement, Ghoochani and Mohajeri further argued that participation could strengthen Iran’s ties with Arab states such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia and help reduce international ‘Iranophobia’ linked to the nuclear issue.

Criticism over indecision

Even before Pezeshkian declined the invitation, many criticized his indecision.

Moderate journalist Mostafa Faghihi posted on X: “It’s obvious Iran should attend — but we can easily predict it won’t. The decision must balance national interests, regime expediency, and the demands of hardliners.”

Veteran reformist journalist Ali Hekmat voiced frustration in a post on X: “This government lacks even the ability to influence complex situations on a limited scale. Mr. Pezeshkian has failed to deliver on his promises.”

A user posted with the hashtag #SharmElSheikh: “The people were wrong to think there was a difference between Raisi and Pezeshkian. This system makes everyone the same.”

Kamran Abdoli, deputy head of the Tehran Fire Department for prevention, said schools have lagged far behind hospitals, offices, and newer residential buildings in meeting safety requirements. He blamed chronic underfunding and weak oversight for the failure.

“Compared to other buildings, schools have made little progress in improving safety,” Abdoli told ISNA. “Funding shortages and neglect of safety regulations are the main reasons for this situation.”

He said the city’s fire department had repeatedly inspected schools and issued safety instructions, but only 43 safety files had been formally opened and just three had been approved. “We’ve provided the guidelines and even offered to phase the upgrades to make them affordable, but implementation has been minimal,” he said.

Abdoli warned that the lack of fire alarms, faulty wiring, and unsafe heating equipment were behind most past school fires, adding that small, low-cost measures like staff fire safety training could prevent future tragedies.

The official called for greater cooperation between the Education Ministry, school administrators, and private donors to fund safety upgrades. “With the current structure of schools, safety improvements actually cost less than in other buildings,” he said. “What we need most is determination and follow-through from officials.”

Broader safety crisis in the capital

His warning comes amid wider safety concerns in the capital. Last year, Tehran’s Fire Department identified 18,000 “high-risk” buildings, citing major incidents such as the Plasco Tower collapse in 2017, which killed 20 firefighters, and the 2024 Gandhi Hospital fire.

Officials say thousands of older buildings — including schools, dormitories, and training centers — have been converted from other uses without upgrades to handle larger crowds. Abdoli said this makes evacuation difficult and heightens the risk of mass casualties in the event of a fire.

“The city cannot afford another tragedy,” he said. “Ensuring fire safety in schools must become a national priority.”

Veteran theocrat Ali Khamenei is Iran's ultimate decision-maker on all matters foreign and domestic, leaving the hapless relative moderate attempts to manage serial crises not of his own making.

Doubts about his ability to tackle these problems are being voiced across Iran’s political spectrum, with commentators warning that such skepticism could weaken the government’s stability and decision-making.

Last week, both the hardline daily Kayhan and the reformist weekly Tejarat-e Farda published sharp critiques of Pezeshkian’s leadership.

The latter opened its attack with a provocative headline. “Has Pezeshkian’s Political Life Come to an End?” asked editor-in-chief Mohammad Taheri.

“Since the start of his government in July 2024, Pezeshkian has faced multiple crises,” Taheri wrote. “Although he did not create them, the way he responded revealed flaws in his management style and weaknesses in his performance.”

The editorial was reprinted by several outlets, including Tehran’s leading economic daily Donya-ye Eghtesad, throughout the week.

Taheri reminded readers that Pezeshkian won the presidency by a narrow margin of three million votes over ultraconservative Saeed Jalili, largely on promises to lift sanctions, ease international tensions and expand social freedoms.

‘Public disillusioned’

The president’s record on the latter is easier to defend, marked by his refusal to enact the so-called Chastity Bill that sought tougher punishments for defying Iran’s Islamic dress code.

On the former two, however, Taheri saw nothing but failure. “Those who voted for him expect a clear roadmap for the country’s future,” he wrote, predicting more hardship for ordinary Iranians with the return of sweeping UN sanctions.

Taheri further warned that Pezeshkian’s social capital is rapidly eroding, as many of his supporters grow disillusioned by his repeated retreats in the face of radical opposition.

The most consequential came last month, when supreme leader Ali Khamenei ruled out US talks in a televised speech just as Pezeshkian was en route to New York, effectively torpedoing any prospect of a thaw with Washington that might have forestalled sanctions.

‘Calls for resignation’

The moderates’ critique was uncharacteristically echoed by Tehran’s loudest hardliners.

“It appears Pezeshkian’s future will be far more difficult than his past,” Kayhan’s editorial read. “He is confronting a multitude of social, political and economic crises that have deepened public dissatisfaction with his performance.”

The paper—whose editor is appointed by the Supreme Leader—had a stark warning for the president: “If he fails to offer practical solutions to ease economic pressures and restore public trust, his position will likely weaken further.”

“Former supporters are now calling for his resignation,” the editorial asserted.

The elephant in the room

The moderate outlet Khabar Online retorted on October 8 that Kayhan is seeking to shape public opinion in favor of an early end to Pezeshkian’s presidency, paving the way for a hardline resurgence in the next election.

The site quoted reformist figure Mostafa Hashemi Taba, who accused hardliners of helping the “enemies of the state” to score factional points.

“Hardliners are a minority, as last year’s election results showed. They want to destroy the country, and intelligence agencies should keep a close watch on them,” Hashemi Taba said.

Conservative commentator Naser Imani bashed both hardliners and reformists for their attacks. Undermining the government, he told Khabar Online, ultimately weakens the nation “as bigger, harsher waves approach.”

True to form, few in this debate dare to acknowledge where real authority lies: with the Supreme Leader and his entrenched network of military and security power.

The president, be it Pezeshkian or any successor, remains expendable, a convenient target in a room where no one dares acknowledge the elephant.

In the 1975 conversation with celebrated Egyptian journalist Mohamed Hassanein Heikal, then editor of Al-Ahram, the Shah boasted about Iran’s military buildup, including air defenses capable of striking targets a few hundred kilometers beyond Iranian airspace.

“We wish to be powerful in the region where we live,” he told Heikal, adding that “no government would base its defensive policy” on appearing weak—a line that now echoes in the rhetoric of Iran’s current leadership.

The interview was republished by the Khabar Online news outlet, which is close to Ali Larijani, a veteran political insider, Iranian security chief and confidante of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Tehran has stepped up visual references to Iran's mythical and pre-Islamic past since a punishing June war with Israel in the United States, in a move once unthinkable for the imagery's association with the ousted monarchy.

Likely a bid to bolster popular support, the strategy had previously stopped short of outright references to the royal family.

“The military force we are building is meant to confront those who threaten us,” the Shah, who was dethroned in the 1979 Islamic Revolution, said.

“I do not want Iran to have a nuclear bomb for two reasons,” he continued. “One is the cost, and the other is that we do not have the means—such as ships or missiles—to carry the bomb to its target.”

Yet he added pointedly: “If someone comes out of the bush and wants to have a nuclear bomb in this region, Iran should undoubtedly have one of those bombs too.”

Curious timing

Khabar Online said the remarks were part of a broader exchange reflecting Iran’s growing self-assertion during the oil-boom years.

Like other encounters between the late Shah and media figures such as Mike Wallace, Oriana Fallaci and Barbara Walters, Heikal’s questioning was probing—and the Shah relished the opportunity to rebut his interviewer.

At one point, he scolded Heikal for misnaming the Persian Gulf and “misstating facts” about Iran, a scene that captured his combative, self-assured style.

“The Shahanshah was very serious in his statements and he believed in what he said,” Heikal later recalled, deploying a term meaning king of kings. “I did not expect that, and I did not have an answer to convince him.”

The Shah, aware of Heikal’s ties to Egypt’s late president Gamal Abdel Nasser and his sympathy for Iran’s ousted premier Mohammad Mossadegh, used the interview to frame Iran as a regional power surrounded by covetous rivals.

“We wish to have good ties with the Arab world,” he told Heikal, comparing Iran’s armed forces to “a lock on a door” and describing deterrence as “an opportunity for our friends and anyone else who wishes to help us.”

On Israel and Iran’s future

In another passage that might resonate in Tehran today, the Shah dismissed Israeli criticism while cautioning its leaders against overreach.

“The Israeli press are the only ones that heavily attack us,” he said. “But we are not bothered by that. We have told Israeli leaders they cannot occupy the entire Arab world … but the Israelis do not take any advice.”

In the West, the interview is remembered less for its atomic undertones than for the Shah’s sweeping ambition.

“I want the standard of living in Iran in ten years’ time to be exactly on a level with that in Europe today,” he said. “In twenty years’ time we shall be ahead of the United States.”

Half a century later, its selective resurrection serves as a reminder that Tehran’s language of power transcends time—and the ruler’s outfit.