In a December 10, 2024 article on the Saudi news website Elaph titled "Assad's Fall: The Beginning of the End for Khamenei", Iranian oppositionist Mehdi Oghbai wrote that the downfall of Bashar Al-Assad's regime in Syria is a momentous event that may hasten the fall of its ally, the Iranian regime. Oghbai, who is a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), added that Assad's fall severely diminishes the power and influence of the Iranian regime, and can inspire other peoples to rise up against their tyrannical regimes and achieve freedom.
Mehdi Oqhbai (Image: Al-Masri Al-Yawm, Egypt)
The following are translated excerpts from his article:[1]
"On December 8, [2024] history saw an unforgettable day: the fall of Bashar Al-Assad, which brought an end to half a century of his family's rule, a family infamous for its oppression and crimes against the peoples of the region. This was a day of victory for the Syrian people and their heroic rebels who confronted Assad's dictatorship with blood and victims and proved that the desire for freedom is stronger than the weapons of the tyrants. Bashar Al-Assad was a strategic ally of [Iran's Supreme Leader Ali] Khamenei and a symbol of oppression and cruelty throughout the Middle East. In the recent years, he suppressed the popular uprisings in Syria with indescribable cruelty, causing the death of over 500,000 people and the displacement of millions from their homes. [But] despite all the crimes committed, he could not withstand the will of the Syrian people and their commitment to freedom.
"When Assad faced [the threat] of being toppled in the beginning of the Syrian revolution, Khamenei's regime intervened in order to rescue him. It sent Qassem Soleimani, [commander of the Qods Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps,] and the Qods Force mercenaries to support him, wasting billions of dollars stolen from the Iranian people. The Iranian intervention to support Assad reportedly cost more than $50 billion, which reflects the depth of the involvement of both these regimes in the oppression of the peoples. With Assad's downfall, the cornerstone of the Iranian regime's strategic depth collapsed… a collapse whose future repercussions will be felt all the way to Iraq and Iran [itself]… The downfall of Bashar Al-Assad was not just a victory for the Syrian people, but also a message of hope for [all] the oppressed peoples in the region. In Damascus, [a capital that was] a symbol of tyranny, the people stormed the palace of Bashar Al-Assad and toppled the Iranian embassy, which for decades had been a symbol of the Iranian occupation of Syria. In Aleppo the consulate of the Iranian regime was smashed, which is a clear indication of the Syrian people's opposition to the influence of the ayatollahs [over their country]. The Syrian rebels also destroyed the statues of [Bashar's father,] Hafez Al-Assad, the dictator who butchered 50,000 people in Hama in 1982. They dragged away the remains of his despised statues and pitched them into the garbage dumps. That is a symbolic message about the fate awaiting every tyrant, including Khamenei, whose fate will be the same.
"After liberating the Syrian cities, the rebels threw open the prison gates and freed the prisoners who had suffered the oppression of the regime. This happy sight heralds future events in Iran, when prisons like Evin, Adel Abad and Wakil Abad will be breached by the people and the rebels in order to liberate the prisoners and end the oppression.
"The fall of Bashar Al-Assad was not a passing event, but an event with far-reaching strategic implications for the entire region. It created a clear shift in the balance of power, for Iran has lost one of its most important regional allies, increasing its isolation and weakening its influence. This development is not confined to the political level [in Syria], but serves as an inspiration for other peoples in the region, since the Syrian people's successful overthrow of their dictator proves that standing up to tyrants is not an impossible feat.
"The downfall of the Syrian regime is an important step in hastening the end of Khemenei's regime, because the loss of the strategic depth of the Iranian regime topples the foundations of this regime's hegemony and paves the way to its collapse. From Sednaya [prison in Syria] to Evin [prison in Iran], and from Damascus to Tehran, [people] will learn the same lesson, [namely] that tyrants, no matter how powerful, cannot withstand the will of a people yearning for freedom. Assad's downfall is proof that justice and freedom will come to everyone suffering oppression and injustice, and that the tyrants will not escape their inevitable end, despite their power and weapons.
"The rebelling peoples of Syria, Iran and the rest of the region deserve a life of dignity and freedom. Assad's downfall paves the way to penning a new chapter in the history of the Middle East, a chapter titled 'Hope, Dignity and Freedom for All.'"
[1] Elaph.com, December 10, 2024.
