TIME MAGAZINE: The latest issue features ‘After The Ayatollah’,,,

Iran on the Edge

After the Islamic Republic regime unleashed lethal force to quell nationwide protests against its rule, five leading Iranian writers reflect on how the country arrived at this pivotal moment—and where it might go from here.

The Islamic Republic’s Founding Myth

he Islamic Republic’s already lengthy catalogue of fears has ballooned of late: alongside the possibility of being overthrown by its own citizens, it is haunted by the prospect of a full accounting of the massacres it has carried out; by the tenuous loyalty of its army, and its empty coffers; and by the shadow of Israeli spies and Islamic State militants. What terrifies Iran’s theocrats the most, the fear that eclipses all their fears, is the ability of the people at large to clearly see the essential realities of the present regime.

Iranian Progress Cannot Be Stopped

Today, the Islamic Republic of Iran resembles a half-lifeless body collapsed on the ground, yet still possessing powerful arms. With the support of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other military forces, it has attacked the people of Iran and, through widespread killings, has delivered a brutal blow to the popular uprising. Yet this is only a temporary success. The republic is already dead morally, economically, and socially.