The protests in Iran came to a head between January 8 and January 19, when over a million people joined the demonstrations. But the regime’s subsequent crackdown, likely killing at least 5,000 protesters and arresting and wounding tens of thousands more, has likely capped the capability of the demonstrations to topple Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei unless US President Donald Trump orders an attack.
Even for the notoriously spontaneous-acting and whimsical US president, his policy zigzags on the Islamic Republic over the last month have been dizzying. When the protests started in Iran, Trump took his standard stand-offish, classic “America first” position of staying out of foreign conflicts. However, he started to shift gears after some days of protests, toying with the idea of getting involved, and then, after the successful January 3 American abduction of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, he got more confidence and showed even more interest.
Still, during the critical January 8-9 days, Trump was not ready to get involved. Only as reports of the mass killings grew within the media did Trump accelerate his potential intervention, until on Wednesday, January 14, he posted, “Help is on the way,” almost ordering a series of strikes. Eventually, Trump called off the attack. There were murmurous reasons as to why, such as he was not sure enough about what to attack, America was not fully ready to defend its Middle East bases, although it had carried out some rushed evacuations, and the US military lacked its full resources, like the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. (Read More)
Still, during the critical January 8-9 days, Trump was not ready to get involved. Only as reports of the mass killings grew within the media did Trump accelerate his potential intervention, until on Wednesday, January 14, he posted, “Help is on the way,” almost ordering a series of strikes. Eventually, Trump called off the attack. There were murmurous reasons as to why, such as he was not sure enough about what to attack, America was not fully ready to defend its Middle East bases, although it had carried out some rushed evacuations, and the US military lacked its full resources, like the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. (Read More)
