Inside Iran’s Preparation for War and Plans for Survival

In early January, as nationwide protests coincided with the threat of U.S. strikes, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei turned to Ali Larijani to steer the country. Larijani, 67, a former Revolutionary Guards commander and now head of the Supreme National Security Council, has effectively been running Iran and has sidelined President Masoud Pezeshkian, who has said, "I’m a doctor, not a politician." Larijani’s responsibilities have grown: he led the crackdown on recent protests, is keeping a lid on dissent, liaises with allies such as Russia, Qatar and Oman, oversees nuclear negotiations with Washington and is devising plans for managing the country during a possible war.

"We are ready in our country," he said in an interview in Doha. "We are definitely more powerful than before... We are not looking for war, and we won’t start the war. But if they force it on us, we will respond." Khamenei has instructed a close circle to prepare the Islamic Republic to survive American and Israeli strikes and the assassination of top leaders.

Iran, Doha

iran, ali larijani, khamenei, masoud pezeshkian, revolutionary guards, protests, us strikes, nuclear negotiations, russia, assassination