As Israel bombarded hundreds of military and government targets in Iran, the core of the Iranian opposition condemned a “No to War” campaign launched in North America and Europe. The Iranian dissidents argue that the Islamic Republic is orchestrating the anti-war protests in a bid to shield itself from further Israeli—and potentially American—strikes, seeking survival through deflection.
The campaign has two faces: one rooted in pro-Hamas leftist circles in the West, and the other composed of a smaller segment of Iranian diaspora. According to the opposition, Tehran has activated its networks abroad to mount pressure on Israel. Some Iranians, they say, have been misled, while others are motivated by personal interests, with family or business ties to the regime. Iranians opposing the Islamic Republic held their own counter-rallies.
Iranian dissidents argue that the Islamic Republic is orchestrating the anti-war protests in a bid to shield itself from further Israeli—and potentially American—strikes.
Opposition groups—including all monarchists and many republicans and human rights activists—insist the blame lies squarely with the regime, which has threatened Israel with annihilation for 46 years. While acknowledging the risk of civilian casualties in war, they argue that dismantling the Islamic Republic is vital to prevent further repression, executions, and internal bloodshed. Critics of the war response say it was Israel that violated Iran’s sovereignty first, endangering civilian lives—some even distort facts, accusing Israel of deliberately targeting noncombatants.
The number of civilian deaths remains unclear, with some sources suggesting over 200. Regime opponents challenge this figure, arguing that many casualties were family members of targeted officials, caught near explosions. The term “ordinary people” has become a battleground in social media clashes, where opposition figures post images and reports of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and government targets hit by Israeli strikes—asking whether elite military officers and riot-control units used against protesters count as “ordinary people.” They note that this may be the first war in history to begin by eliminating top commanders rather than conscripts or civilians.
Recalling the bloody November 2019 crackdown, the popular though anonymous Iranian social media user (@deafowl) posted: “For a week now, Israel has been hitting military centers and Revolutionary Guards gathering spots with hundreds of fighter jets, and not even five hundred people have died. But you killed 1,500 of this country’s youth in just three days!”
As Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei appears to be sheltering in a fortified underground bunker—apparent from the poor quality of his latest video message—the regime’s internal coherence remains in question. The government has shut down internet access, and even official news websites have become largely inaccessible, making it difficult to assess developments among insiders. Nonetheless, on June 19, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-linked media published a cryptic statement warning of a plot by “disreputable individuals” allegedly seeking to defy Khamenei’s authority.
Social media posts reflect growing concern that if Khamenei’s regime survives the current assault, it may turn its wrath inward—once again targeting its own population.
“According to a credible report, a few suspicious and disreputable elements are, in their own view, attempting to involve some clerics in Qom and call for a form of surrender and compromise with the child-killing Zionist regime. They are concerned about a strong reaction from the establishment to this move and therefore plan to put forward a former official as the figurehead of this treacherous initiative. So far, that individual has not responded to them,” the statement said. The “former official” mentioned likely refers to a former president—possibly the centrist Hassan Rouhani.
Whether this is a genuine alert about an internal rift or a preemptive warning to deter dissent among political and religious elites remains unclear.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump’s June 19 statement that he would wait up to two weeks before deciding whether the United States would join the air campaign dismayed many Iranians. Social media posts reflect growing concern that if Khamenei’s regime survives the current assault, it may turn its wrath inward—once again targeting its own population.
Some users questioned whether Trump was serious at all, speculating that he might just be “singing a lullaby” to Iran’s rulers.
One popular Iranian artist with 149,000 followers on X wrote: “After the First Gulf War, Saddam remained in power. It is estimated that he massacred between 30,000 to 60,000 Iraqi citizens in retaliation. The survival of the Islamic Republic guarantees the massacre of innocent civilians and continued repression.”
