Why many in Iran root for Israel
This past weekend, when Iran attacked Israel directly for the first time, reaction among Iranians was not exactly what the regime in Tehran expected. Yes, many people rushed to buy gasoline and food, fearing a wider war. Some expressed a deep dread of war, recalling a 1980s conflict with Iraq. Yet one common response, expressed online and in street graffiti, was hope that Israel would somehow bring down the regime.
That sentiment was so prevalent that Iran’s rulers quickly issued a notice urging citizens to report any support of Israel, saying it was a crime.
For all the gloom among Iranians – about the economy, suppression of women, and Iran’s role in regional conflicts – they show an independent streak that’s evident in a constant redefining of their nation’s identity. Well before the weekend attack, for example, one poll showed more than a third of people have a positive view of Israel.
Years of protest by Iranians in favor of the freedom to choose their own government has led to a more inclusive nationalism. One prominent critic, the exiled soccer star Ali Karimi, who has 15 million Instagram followers, uploaded a picture after the attack on Israel that stated, “We are Iran, not the Islamic Republic.”
Perhaps the biggest critic who remains free in Iran is Shaikh Abdol-Hamid, the top Sunni leader in a country controlled by Shiite clerics. In a speech last month, he said, “Today, Iranians love each other more than ever.” He asked for an inclusive government that respects the will of all Iranians.
“We share common interests with all people of the world,” he added. “We respect and love all people.”
Iran’s strength over decades has been its ability to fuse the identities of many faiths, ethnicities, and languages into a plurality that embraces one country. The current Islamic regime, like the secular monarchy before it, has not been able to impose a singular identity from on high. If many Iranians extend a welcoming hand to Israel, that is simply part of their identity.
