NEW ANALYSIS: The Ayatollah Is Dead. The Revolutionary Guard Remains
Support our truly independent journalism. NEW ANALYSIS: The Ayatollah Is Dead. The Revolutionary Guard Remains What Trump's amnesty offer to the IRGC signals about the path forward in Iran. Zev Shalev Mar 1 ∙ The Ayatollah is dead. Iranian state television has confirmed it, declaring Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei “martyred in a joint attack by the criminal United States and the Zionist regime.” His palace is rubble. His defense minister, his National Security Council secretary, and as many as ten senior leaders who made the mistake of sitting in the same room are gone with him. But the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — the institution that actually runs Iran — is very much alive. Paid subscribers can access the full story below The IRGC controls 30 percent of Iran’s economy, commands the most powerful military force in the country, and runs an empire of construction firms, telecom companies, shipping lines, and oil operations. Trump’s amnesty offer, extended within hours of the s...