At the start of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, perhaps around the time that the U.S. Embassy in Tehran was overtaken by the revolutionaries and Americans were taken hostage, Ayatollah Khomeini made a statement that was printed in two of the country’s newspapers. The Keyhan and Etelaa’t both quoted him in their headlines, saying, “America cannot do a damn thing!”
Khomeini’s assurance came to be seen as a prophecy. He was no longer just the “great leader,” the imam; he was the modern-day prophet. The lack of a strong American response under then-President Jimmy Carter to the overthrow of the Iranian government emboldened extremists to start on their path of exporting Islamic revolution outside its borders.
In the 1980s, after then-President Ronald Reagan withdrew the U.S. Marines from Beirut and did not punish Hezbollah for the torture and brutal cold murder of the CIA chief William F. Buckley, the Islamic regime became convinced that it was facing a paper tiger.
U.S. President Donald Trump volunteered last week that if all the hostages in Gaza are not unconditionally released that Saturday by the Iranian proxy Hamas, “all hell will break loose.” But that didn’t happen.
Is the world in for a repeat performance by the current president in the footsteps of Carter and Reagan? In this neighborhood, you either keep your mouth shut or you follow through. A lack of action on threats is far more potent in the psyche of the Islamist warriors than any drug.
A litmus test on the influence of the Islamists is just around the corner, specifically on March 20, the first day of the Persian New Year, Norouz. This year, the 13-day, joyous celebration falls during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset and defer from all bodily pleasures, including food, drink, tobacco, hashish, opium and marital relations.
What will the Iranian citizenry opt to do this year? Will they celebrate the majestic Iranian New Year with revelry? Or will they fast and show loyalty to Islam, above all else? The world will be watching.