Civil War Fears: Larijani Claims Protesters Seek Weapons as Iranian Government Braces for Internal Front

Ali Larijani has raised the stakes by claiming that “terrorist-like” protesters are rushing toward military and police centers to obtain weapons. This narrative of an incipient civil war is being used to justify the deployment of the IRGC against domestic “urban groups.” The Iranian government is bracing for a U.S. strike that would act as the “air force” for an armed internal rebellion, a scenario that would mean the end of clerical rule.
The regime’s fear is that the 60% inflation and falling living standards have made the public desperate enough to pick up arms. By bracing for an attack, the government is also trying to “break public cohesion” by painting the opposition as traitors. However, the record death toll and the “body ransom” reports suggest that the public’s anger is already far beyond the point of being controlled by propaganda.
The U.S. fleet’s presence in the Mediterranean provides a psychological boost to these protesters. The Iranian government is bracing for a strike that would target the “police centers” Larijani mentioned, effectively disarming the regime’s front-line defenders. If the protesters manage to obtain weapons while the U.S. suppresses the regime’s airpower, the “civil war” Larijani fears could become a revolutionary reality.