The imperialist rivalry between the eastern camp (led by China) and the western camp (led by America) is getting more hot as the USA is declaring to defend the terror-state of Israel against a possible Iranian missile strike. After the Israeli’s attacked the Iranian embassy in Syria, the Ayatollah regime speaks of a retaliation strike. The regime of Benjamin Netanyahu has little regard for human rights, Israel killed over 40.000 Palestinians since the year 2000. It also attacked countries like Lebanon, Syria and Iran, with no sanctions or condemnation from western imperialism.
The position of the Iranian regime
The Islamic Republic of Iran claims to oppose western imperialism since 1979. Its opposition to imperialism led to the installation of a U.S trade embargo. Like Cuba, Iran is forbidden from buying western technology. The hypocritical move to install an embargo had nothing to do with human rights as the USA and western Europe, fully supported the Imperial State of Iran before 1979. It has all to do with the opposition of the Ayatollahs to the imperialist politics of Washington DC and their European puppets.
After the death of Ruhollah Khomeini, the theocratic regime moved towards deregulations and privatisations, in the hope of better relationships with the west. Although Europe wanted to end the sanctions, it was Donald Trump to reinstalled them as Tehran kept opposing western imperialism and its ambition for global power. Iran opposed the imperialist attacks on nations like Afghanistan and Iraq. It also supports Hezbollah (Party of God) in Lebanon and arms Shia-Islamist militia’s in Iraq to fight against Islamic State, which is a Sunni-Islamist movement.
Israeli attacks against Iran
The State of Israel knows that it can attack any nation as long as the USA does not lift a finger. This is why any Israeli government could launch bombing raids against Lebanese, Syrian and Iranian positions. On 1 April, the Iranian embassy in Damascus was attacked by Israel, killing 16 people. This assault received little attention in the western media, despite this massive breach of international law. If Iranian planes would have attacked the American embassy in any nation, then the western media would have called for war.
But this is not the first time Israeli planes have launched attacks against Syria. For many years, the Israeli air-force has illegally attacked Syrian cities, killing members of militia’s who are armed by Iran. Often these attacks are met with harsh anti-Israeli propaganda, but as of this date Iran has not attacked Israel with rockets. Because they know that the USA is the real reason Israel can do what it does. America is the very reason why Benjamin Netanyahu is free to attack anybody who he says is an enemy of the State of Israel.
Iran is not anti-capitalist
Because Iran is under sanctions it is forced to turn to the eastern imperialist camp for support. While criticising western imperialism, the Ayatollahs regime remains silent on the imperialist ambitions of Beijing. This show us that their anti-imperialism is just a smoke screen, to hide their inability to improve the lives of Iranian workers. Today over 40% of the Iranian economy is owned by capitalists and they are free to exploit workers. 1/3 of all working class Iranians live in poverty, due to the capitalist reforms carried out in the 1990’s.
Although the state keeps control over major means of production, we must not forget that the Iranian government does not work in the interests of working class people. The government works in the interests of Shia-Islamism, its religious leaders; the Ayatollahs. Although there are democratic elements in the Iranian system, the reality remains that those who reject Shia-Islamism are suppressed and are not free to speak out. Anyone calling for secularism, socialism or even liberalism is arrested by the religious police.
Western war with Iran
Western media propagandists have often debated what a war with Iran would look like. Although the USA has the better army, Iran is not Afghanistan or Iraq in 2003. The Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces is better organised and armed compared to the weak militia of the Taliban in 2001 or the Iraqi Army of Saddam Hussein. Iran has the means to fight an imperialist attack by the western powers. A war with the Ayatollahs will result in destabilising the Gulf region and it will disrupt the trade routes. Now this is something the capitalists might not like, but then again if the Israeli regime has the freedom to assault embassies of nations they don’t like, then we should not be surprised if Israel is getting a pay back.
American imperialism will be forced to enter into a war with Iran, should Tehran choose to attack Israel. The position of revolutionary socialists in such an event is clear. We do not support any imperialist attack on Iran. At the same time we reject antisemitic attacks of Iranian proxies in the western world. We do not support reactionary groups like the Party of God (Hezbollah) or the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), who are armed by Iran. Revolutionary socialists reject the terror attacks by Israel on Shia-Islamist groups in Syria and Iraq. These attacks only destabilise the region and can lay the seeds for a bigger conflict to come.
Socialism as the solution to end capitalist rivalry and war
We reject both the imperialist camps of the west and the east. No support for the Ayatollahs, because we have seen how undemocratic, anti-feminist and pro-capitalist they govern. Our alternative is that of socialism from below. Democratic socialism means the nationalisation of the means of production under democratic control by workers councils. Democratic planning of the economy to meet the needs of working class people. Socialism however can only be build up by the working class, not by a sectarian minority. This is why we say that the working class needs a revolutionary party, that can lead the masses into revolution.
The youth of Iran have shown to have huge potential. There have been uprisings, demonstrations and massive protests by younger Iranians. What is lacking each time is the organisation of the working class. Iran lacks a workers party on a socialist program that acts as the vanguard of the proletariat at times when revolution is possible. Because demonstrations are not enough. In a dictatorship like Iran, the workers will have to arm themselves to fight the army and militia’s of the reactionary Ayatollahs.
This will require a class consciousness and the understanding that socialism is the only alternative. Young Iranians wish for an end to the regime and its repressive methods against women and minorities. This is why we say that the future belongs to the youth and that future can only be socialism.
Revolutionary Socialist Media 