From the regime’s point of view, violence is a problem when it spills over and when the protesters may have arms.
An article in Iranian pro-Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps media on Thursday indicated that the media narrative, spun from the top levels of government, will now focus on armed attacks by the protesters. Iran calls these groups “separatists,” a term it generally uses for Kurds, Baloch, Arabs and other minority groups in Iran.
The regime faces unrest from minorities
It is worth recalling that Iran is not only a diverse country but that the minority groups may in fact outnumber the Persians in Iran, meaning that the regime has to balance the fact that it is rooted in the Persian theocratic elites, with the fact that it needs some support from minorities.
The largest minority groups are generally concentrated in various periphery regions of Iran; such as Kurds in the northwest, Azeris in the northwest, Balochis in the southeast as well as Arabs in the southwest. There are also populations of Lurs, Turkmen and other groups. READ MORE
