JERUSALEM – President-elect Donald Trump is set to resume his maximum pressure campaign against him Islamic Republic of Iran Coupled with the country's chronic gas shortages, it could be the final blow that topples the world's worst state sponsor of terrorism, according to a leading expert.
“This gas shortage inside Iran is very significant and exposes the regime’s growing vulnerabilities on multiple fronts. From the defeats of Hezbollah and Hamas in their conflicts with Israel, to the Houthi losses in Yemen and the collapse of the Syrian regime under Assad.” “We are seeing a continuing erosion of the regime’s influence,” Lisa Daftary, an Iran expert and editor-in-chief of the State Department, told Fox News Digital.
She continued: “Add to this the decline of the riyal, the astonishing mismanagement of resources despite the easing of sanctions, and the billions delivered through lopsided deals under Biden’s supervision – it is no surprise that the regime is under enormous pressure.”
Iran is expanding its weapons capabilities necessary to use a nuclear bomb
TEHRAN, IRAN – DECEMBER 19, 2024: A view of traffic lights as power cuts across the country, including the capital, Tehran, Iran on December 19, 2024. In Iran, where electricity supply problems are widespread, power outages have become commonplace. Usually during summer to winter this year. Due to the outages, schools and public institutions have been closed in many cities, while online education will continue in some areas. (Fatima Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“With the possibility of President Trump returning to a position of leadership that… Emphasizes maximum pressureDaftary said that the Iranian people may find themselves in an environment ripe for demanding regime change.
Widespread power outages and severe shortages in gas supplies to homes have shaken Iran's rulers. Serious concern about social and political unrest is on the minds of the rulers who control Iran and are quick to impose violence on the mass opposition.
Nationwide protests over fuel prices and violent repression of women for not properly wearing the mandatory hijab rocked the Tehran regime in 2019 and 2022.
In 2019, Fox News Digital reported that the Iranian regime killed at least 106 people who were protesting fuel price increases. Three years later, in 2022, the regime's notorious morality police killed a young woman, Masha Amini, because she did not cover her hair adequately. The 2022 protests turned into widespread calls across the country to dissolve the Islamic Republic.
According to a report published by the London-based Iran International News Organization on Tuesday, the head of the Iranian judiciary sent a directive to prevent unrest due to power and gas outages.
Demonstrators in Iran protest against the regime in 2022. (Credit: NCR)
“The public prosecutor and prosecutors across the country, in direct cooperation with intelligence, security and law enforcement agencies, must take all appropriate measures and arrangements to achieve stability and enhance security,” Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejaee, head of Iran’s judiciary, reportedly said. The people and citizens, as was the case in the past, and even more resolutely, take appropriate measures until the enemy’s plot to create insecurity is neutralized…”
TEHRAN, IRAN – DECEMBER 19, 2024: A view of shops with power outages across the country, including the capital, Tehran, Iran on December 19, 2024. In Iran, where electricity supply problems are common, power outages are common which It was witnessed during the summer and extended into the winter this year. Due to the outages, schools and public institutions have been closed in many cities, while online education will continue in some areas. (Fatima Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Despite Iran's vast reserves of natural gas and oil, years of underinvestment, economic mismanagement, corruption and sanctions have left the energy sector unprepared for seasonal spikes.
The Islamic Republic has also funneled huge sums of money to its terrorist proxies. Hezbollah in Lebanon And Hamas in Gaza over the years. Matthew Levitt, a counterterrorism expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said Iran passes roughly $700 million to $1 billion annually to Hezbollah, while Hamas receives $100 million annually.
President-elect Donald Trump gestures to AmericaFest, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Phoenix. Trump pledged on Monday to have the Justice Department pursue the death penalty after President Biden moved to commute the death sentences of 37 inmates. (AP Photo/Rick Scottri)
The Iranian rial fell on December 18 to its lowest level in history, losing more than 10% of its value since Trump won the presidential election in November, signaling new challenges for Tehran at a time when it remains engaged in wars. raging throughout the Middle East.
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Iranian religious leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (right) meets with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (left) in Tehran, Iran on February 25, 2019. (Press Office of the Iranian Leader / Bulletin / Anadolu Agency / Getty Images)
The Iranian Central Bank has in the past flooded the market with more hard currencies in an attempt to improve interest rates.
The currency fell as Iran ordered the closure of schools, universities and government offices on Wednesday due to a worsening energy crisis exacerbated by harsh winter conditions. The crisis comes on the heels of a summer that witnessed power outages, and is now exacerbated by extreme cold, snow and air pollution.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
