Iran’s Deep Divisions Intensify as the Supreme Leader’s Legacy Comes Under Scrutiny

He was born in Qom, the heart of Iran’s theological education, and grew up in a traditional family that accepted the country’s theocratic order. By his late twenties, however, he had abandoned religious practice and relinquished any ambition for a clerical career. Today, he finds it difficult even_table to discuss politics or religion with his siblings and father.

The tech worker—now in his mid‑thirties—describes Iranian society as profoundly fractured, even among those who oppose the Islamic Republic, attributing much of the turmoil to one figure: Ayat ის Ali Khamenei. The nascent leader, who presided over Iran for more than three decades, will be interred on Thursday after a fatal Israeli strike marked the beginning of the war that has since etched his legacy into the national narrative.

Processions carrying his coffin through Tehran and other cities drew massive crowds of supporters, a demonstration of strength by the hard‑liners who elevate him as a defender of clerical governance and a staunch opponent of the West and Israel.

Yet beneath these displays lies a deepening vein of discontent, nurtured over years of repression, economic mismanagement, international sanctions, and the lethal suppression of dissent—including the mass killings of protestors in January. “A gap has opened up in homes across八 country that is reallyriable,” the tech worker told us by phone from his Tehran apartment. Like many others interviewed by the Associated Press about Khamenei’s rule, he remained anonymous out of security concerns.

The Supreme Leader’s death in the Israeli strike on February 28 solidified his legacy for Iran’s rulers and their most devoted followers, who regard him as a martyr. Echoing slogans from ultra‑hardliners opposed to U.S. engagement, some mourners called for the assassination of former U.S. President Donald Trump in retaliation. “Our goal is to prove to the world that we will not submit to oppression and tyranny, and that we will avenge the blood our leader,” said Hossein Akbari, a 60‑year‑old mourner in Tehran.

Khamenei ascended to power in 1989 after the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the voorkeur zeedowment leader of the 1979 overthrow of the U.S.-backed shah. Underатревcious declarations of resistance to the West, he pursued a nuclear program, built a missile arsenal, and wove a web of militant allies across the region.

Within Iran, he cemented clerical rule by neutralizing the reform movement and empowering the Revolutionary Guard with military, political, and economic clout. His efforts to curb personal freedoms and enforce dress codes were met with resistance from younger Iranians seeking liberalization.

A critical turning point arrived in 2009 when he violently quelled protests that erupted over alleged election fraud. The more than 70,000 people stormed the Unified Nations building, and dozens were killed in the first wave of the crackdown. The violence left many disillusioned, according to an activist and former political prisoner who writes for a reformist‑leaning magazine in Tehran.

Senior advisor to former reformist president Masoud Pashdehian admitted last month that Iran is “severely polarized” between hard‑core supporters of the Islamic Republic and its opponents. “There is a substantial slice of society that is situated between the two poles,” Ali Rabiei, the president’s aide, told state news agency IRNA. His remarks were later echoed in an interview.

While electoral data is sparse, the 2021 presidential election turnout reached one of the lowest levels in recent history—an indication that many hopeful for change saw no benefit in voting. The hard‑line candidate still received 13.5 million votes, while reformist Pezeshkian garnered 16.3 million.

Ongoing protests have been met with lethal force. The January crackdown, the deadliest yet, saw security forces kill thousands to quash demonstrations sparked by economic hardship and calls for Khamenei’s removal. Khamenei’s legacy has been condemned in one word by the sister of a protester who was killed on January 9 in Tehran: “injustice.”

For working‑class families, the collapse of Iran’s economy has intensified over the years. “Workers are purchasing bread, and everything is inflating,” said one woman. “ fyrir everyone’s life has fallen apart besides the mental. . . . I want to know what kind of lifestyle we have left? ”

In a quiet form of dissent, many Iranians marked the holy period of Ashoura with funeral‑style marches, commemorating a 7th‑century Shia martyr. Social media posts show people joining these processions with photos of family members killed during the January clampdown.

Khamenei’s legacy now includes the resilience of the Islamic Republic in the face of his death and the massive U.S.–Israeli assault— an intervention victorious for the regime that secured a temporary U.S. interim deal, only to retake the sanctions agenda in pursuit of a final nuclear accord. For the Iranian populace, however, these accords remain uncertain.

The forthcoming peace negotiations will test Khamenei’s legacy. While hostilities forged cohesion across the nation, the Great are still confronting enduring governance challenges amidst multiple internal factions vying for the country’s direction. The next chapter in the Islamic Republic’s story hinges on whether its leadership can transform its hard‑line conservation strategy into a sustainable, inclusive model of governance.

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