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Speaker 1: He's Night Side with Dan Ray.

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Speaker 2: I'm w b Z, Boston's News Radio. Thank you very much,

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Speaker 2: Dan Watkins. We are going to change topics now and

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Speaker 2: move to an international subject, and that is what is

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Speaker 2: going on in the nation of Iran. There are over

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Speaker 2: six hundred demonstrators who apparently have been killed either by

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Speaker 2: stampede or by government bullets. With us is a professor

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Speaker 2: from Boston College who has been at Boston College for many,

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Speaker 2: many years. Professor Ali Banu Azizi, Professor but Banu Azizi,

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Speaker 2: welcome to Nightside, and thank you so much for joining us.

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Speaker 1: He is the.

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Speaker 2: Director of the Program in Islamic Civilization and Studies and

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Speaker 2: Chair of the International Studies Academic Advisory Board at Boston College.

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Speaker 2: If you don't mind, Professor, I want to embarrass you

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Speaker 2: a little more by let folks know all of your

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Speaker 2: some of your great achievements and accomplishments. You earned your

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Speaker 2: undergraduate degree at University of Michigan, a master's from the

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Speaker 2: New School for Social Research, and your PhD from Yale.

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Speaker 2: And you're also the past president of the Middle East

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Speaker 2: Studies Association and International Society for Running and Studies. And

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Speaker 2: you've held visiting appointments at Princeton, Harvard, Hebrew, University of Jerusalem,

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Speaker 2: M I. T. And Oxford. It's too bad you couldn't

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Speaker 2: get associated with some famous colleges. Good evening, Sarah, how

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Speaker 2: are you?

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Speaker 3: Good evenings. It's a pleasure to be with you in

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Speaker 3: this program, and many many thanks.

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Speaker 2: Well, thank you for joining to me. I've read many

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Speaker 2: resumes and any many cvs, and none have impressed me

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Speaker 2: more than yours. So let's get right to the to

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Speaker 2: the topic. You've been at BC now for many many years.

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Speaker 2: You were born in Iran, and obviously the country is

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Speaker 2: very different today from the country that you were born in.

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Speaker 2: From your position, and by the way, I didn't even

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Speaker 2: mention the books that you've written. You are you are what,

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Speaker 2: without question a scholar as you sit here in Boston

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Speaker 2: and watch what's going on in your country. This is

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Speaker 2: not the first uprising, you go back to the Green

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Speaker 2: Revolution earlier this century. There have been some other How

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Speaker 2: serious is this? How what what's going on? You know,

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Speaker 2: through your your view of the prism, you have a

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Speaker 2: very well I can't qualify unique, you have a unique

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Speaker 2: view and I'd love to get your perspective as to

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Speaker 2: what's happening and how this might eventuate.

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Speaker 3: Many thanks if i'm let me start with just a

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Speaker 3: bit of background about the country. Let's keep in mind

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Speaker 3: that we're talking about a country with a population of

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Speaker 3: over ninety two million people, quite well educated, very much connected,

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Speaker 3: particularly the younger people, very much connected to the rest

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Speaker 3: of the world, sophisticated, and a country which for the

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Speaker 3: past forty seven years has been under a regime that

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Speaker 3: declares itself as having divine provenance. It's much more than

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Speaker 3: what we talk about when we talk about, you know,

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Speaker 3: religious governments. No, this is a government that claims that

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Speaker 3: the Supreme Leader is indeed God's representative on earth. So

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Speaker 3: there is a complete what we might call sacralization of

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Speaker 3: the state. But it's also a country or a regime

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Speaker 3: i should say, which from its very inception, that is

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Speaker 3: some forty seven years ago, back in nineteen seventy nine,

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Speaker 3: after the Iranian Revolution of that year. It's a regime

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Speaker 3: that has promoted and lived by three major ideological positions.

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Speaker 3: One anti imperialism, which really has meant from the very beginning,

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Speaker 3: Anti Americanism, primarily the Great Satan as they refer to

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Speaker 3: the United States. Then anti Zionism, against Israel and finally,

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Speaker 3: a regime that has tried to promote you know, religious

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Speaker 3: or Islamic progressive ideologies throughout the world. It has done

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Speaker 3: so by creating a so called axis of resistance. For example,

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Speaker 3: in countries like Lebanon is Bolda in Yemen, the WHOSIS

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Speaker 3: through very close association with the Syrian regime of Beshar

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Speaker 3: Asset and so on. But in the past two or

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Speaker 3: three years, that network, that acxis of resistance has been

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Speaker 3: pretty much destrated, and of course the Syrian regime has

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Speaker 3: fallen and the new government in Syria is not at

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Speaker 3: all friendly with the Iranian government, so internationally the regime

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Speaker 3: is in a much much weaker position. Domestically, also, the

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Speaker 3: regime has really lost much, if not all, of its legitimacy,

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Speaker 3: particularly as a regime that claims this fusion of religion

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Speaker 3: and the state. There are a number of public opinion surveys,

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Speaker 3: including one by the Way, that was carried out by

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Speaker 3: the government itself one of its ministries, Ministries of Islamic Guidance,

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Speaker 3: that shows that seventy to eighty percent of the population

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Speaker 3: rejects disfusion of religion and UH and the state. So

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Speaker 3: both domestically and internationally. The regime has really lost much

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Speaker 3: of its favor and its power, regional power in the

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Speaker 3: Middle East.

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Speaker 2: But it is also again, it's a theocracy. You know,

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Speaker 2: there's there's only one other country in the world that

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Speaker 2: believes their leader is a direct representative of God, and

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Speaker 2: that would be the Catholic Church. There may be other religions,

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Speaker 2: but obviously the Vatican, UH and the Holy See are

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Speaker 2: not of the strength of Iran. So for forty seven

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Speaker 2: years there are there are people today who have probably

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Speaker 2: the majority of the that it's a it's a young population.

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Speaker 2: The va majority of the Iranian population has only known

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Speaker 2: the theocracy. They've never known any other form of government.

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Speaker 3: That's true, but that younger population is first of all,

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Speaker 3: quite well educated. One statistic which I think is indicative

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Speaker 3: of that, referring to the position of women in Iran,

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Speaker 3: is that sixty four percent of the university college age

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Speaker 3: Iranians are women. They're very much part of a very

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Speaker 3: active younger society in Iran, and that group has been

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Speaker 3: remarkably active in some of the recent protests. We will

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Speaker 3: come back to that, yes.

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Speaker 2: Okay, we will. I have to take a break, because

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Speaker 2: we break it about ten fifteen, and I think it's

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Speaker 2: very important to get your perspective and background. I have

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Speaker 2: many questions. I invite our audience if they want to

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Speaker 2: ask a question. Six one, seven, two, five, four, ten

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Speaker 2: thirty six one seven, nine, three, one, ten thirty. My

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Speaker 2: guest is Professor Ali Bonowazizi. He has taught at Boston

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Speaker 2: College now for nearly a half century, or maybe a

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Speaker 2: little more. Actually, he is an Iranian scholar. He has

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Speaker 2: written books on the Middle East and on Iran. I

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Speaker 2: can't think of anyone who have ever spoken to you

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Speaker 2: left Iran. I assume to come to America to go

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Speaker 2: to college. Is that correct?

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Speaker 3: Ye, at the age of seventeen, really, even without finishing

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Speaker 3: high school. That's yeah, that's great.

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Speaker 2: Have you obviously you could have gone back and forth

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Speaker 2: pretty easily before nineteen seventy nine. Have you been Have

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Speaker 2: you been able to travel back to Iran since the revolution?

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Speaker 2: The arrival of you know, I have toltdal Homany.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, once I was able to go back. I used

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Speaker 3: to go back, you know, and and actually told that

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Speaker 3: university for one year. But after the revolution, only once

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Speaker 3: I was able to go back, and quite frankly because

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Speaker 3: of my involvement in various human rights domains, it would

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Speaker 3: be totally unsafe for me to go back, not.

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Speaker 2: The not the wisest travels decisions can possibly make. Okay, well,

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Speaker 2: we will take that quick break. I will be back

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Speaker 2: with Professor Banawazizi of Boston College right after this quick

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Speaker 2: break here on night Side.

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Speaker 1: Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.

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Speaker 2: My guest Professor Ali Badawazi Zizi. Uh, he's in a

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Speaker 2: way and scholar, no question about that, as taught at

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Speaker 2: Boston College for around a half a century. I can't

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Speaker 2: think of anyone who can give us a better perspective.

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Speaker 2: You have given us, you know, a history and an

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Speaker 2: idea about Iran. It's isolated. I don't know how much

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Speaker 2: people in Iran are able to travel to other countries.

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Speaker 2: But is this uprising? Would you characterize it as an uprising?

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Speaker 2: As a revolution? Is this something that that you know

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Speaker 2: a lot of American people are hopeful that people in

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Speaker 2: Iran could have a freer society than in which they

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Speaker 2: have been consigned to live. Is is that at all

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Speaker 2: possible at this point or is it even desirable?

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Speaker 3: Where it has certainly been the desire and intention and

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Speaker 3: work of particularly the younger generation in Iran for the

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Speaker 3: past couple of years, a couple of decades. I should say,

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Speaker 3: let's remember that back about since I think it was

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Speaker 3: in nineteen in twenty nine, there was a Green movement

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Speaker 3: which was a protest movement against an election that had

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Speaker 3: been really stolen and fraudulent, and it lasted for a

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Speaker 3: number of months and finally was suppressed. Then let's also

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Speaker 3: recall that two or three years ago, in twenty twenty two,

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Speaker 3: there was another protest movement which came to be known

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Speaker 3: as the Women's Life Freedom movement. And here I want

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Speaker 3: to call your attention to the slogan of that movement,

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Speaker 3: which we have all heard, women life Freedom. We all

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Speaker 3: know what is meant by women or what was meant

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Speaker 3: by women. Gender equality was the demand. Then we also

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Speaker 3: know what they meant by freedom. They wanted to have

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Speaker 3: a free society, to be able to vote, to be

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Speaker 3: able to express their views, and so on so forth.

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Speaker 3: But that's Middle World life. I think it's really important

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Speaker 3: to appreciate what they meant by that. They meant to

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Speaker 3: be able to live a normal, ordinary life with dignity.

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Speaker 3: It's comparable to the American notion of pursuit of happiness,

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Speaker 3: that demand, that demand has been one of the major objectives,

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Speaker 3: one of the major demands of this younger generation. Yes,

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Speaker 3: gender equality, which by the way, was very inclusive. The

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Speaker 3: feminist movement, this particular feminist movement in Iran was inclusive

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Speaker 3: of women and men. It was not a feminist movement

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Speaker 3: that was against men, but one that demanded freedom and

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Speaker 3: equality for women. But as I mentioned, really the intriguing

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Speaker 3: part of that slogan was life meaning, as I mentioned before,

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Speaker 3: ordinary life to be lived with dignity. And then we

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Speaker 3: have the ongoing protest movement which began last December, about

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Speaker 3: two weeks ago, and it began this time around around

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Speaker 3: economic issues. Interestingly, the first group that began these demonstrations

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Speaker 3: and protests were the merchants in the so called bazaars

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Speaker 3: of Tehran, but it quite quickly spread to other segments

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Speaker 3: of the society, immediately to the universities and then to

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Speaker 3: the streets of practically every major city in the country.

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Speaker 3: Every province of the country has been going through these

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Speaker 3: uh protests in the past two weeks, and as I

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Speaker 3: think you mentioned very briefly, the number of casualties has

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Speaker 3: been increasing dramatically. The latest figures that I've seen one

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Speaker 3: hundred and forty eight confirmed debts, but that may be

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Speaker 3: an underestimation.

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Speaker 2: Let me ask a question if I could, and again,

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Speaker 2: it just struck my mind that a government like Iran

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Speaker 2: can maintain its power. It doesn't need you know, a

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Speaker 2: dictatorship of a theocracy can maintain its power with something

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Speaker 2: less than fifty percent of the population, because obviously they

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Speaker 2: have military and weapons that the protesters don't have. Is

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Speaker 2: there any statistic as to what percentage of the Iranian

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Speaker 2: people now want to get back to a different form

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Speaker 2: of government. Is there any polls that you've seen that

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Speaker 2: are reliable that would suggest that fifty or sixty or

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Speaker 2: even a higher percentage of people would like to see

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Speaker 2: the government of the Malas recede and a more secular

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Speaker 2: government develop.

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Speaker 3: Readout any question whatsoever. I can state with confidence that

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Speaker 3: many of the surveys that have been taken, including as

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Speaker 3: I mentioned before, one taken by the government itself, clearly

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Speaker 3: show that the people, the vast majority of the people,

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Speaker 3: want to see a different government, more specifically a separation

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Speaker 3: between religion and the states. This is not an anti

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Speaker 3: religious movement. They want to relegate religion to the private

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Speaker 3: realm of life, but not have it as the determining

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Speaker 3: power within the state apparatus. That idea is very clearly adopted, stated,

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Speaker 3: and pursued by the vast majority of the population. There's

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Speaker 3: no doubt about that whatsoever.

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Speaker 2: My guest is Professor Ali Banu Azizi uh. He is

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Speaker 2: a running scholar born in Iran has been a professor

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Speaker 2: at Boston College for approximately half century. He is I

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Speaker 2: think just a wonderful person for us to speak with

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Speaker 2: if you have a question, and I do look for

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Speaker 2: questions tonight, I have many questions, but I love to

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Speaker 2: give my audience an opportunity and a chance to join us.

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Speaker 2: Six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty six one seven,

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Speaker 2: nine three one ten thirty. We haven't even begun the

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Speaker 2: question that I would ask. I would invite you to

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Speaker 2: join the conversation and I'll work your questions in right

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Speaker 2: after the news break at the bottom of the hour

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Speaker 2: with Professor Ali Bano Zizi of Boston College.

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Speaker 1: You're on Night Side with Dan Ray ONBZ Boston's news radio.

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Speaker 2: We're honored to be speaking with Professor Ali Bano Zizi

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Speaker 2: He is a professor at Boston College for close to

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Speaker 2: a half century, or maybe even a little more than

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Speaker 2: a half century. He's an Iranian scholar. He was born

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Speaker 2: in Iran, educated in the United States. He has been

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Speaker 2: exiled really since nineteen seventy nine, one trip back to Iran.

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Speaker 2: Probably I can't think of a more interesting guest on

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Speaker 2: this topic, Professor, What I'd like to do? I could

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Speaker 2: ask you a million questions, but I also like to

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Speaker 2: make sure that my listeners can participate. Often then we

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Speaker 2: get to speak with someone of your your pedigree, So

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Speaker 2: I will continue some questions. I certainly want to get

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Speaker 2: to the questions of what, if anything, the United States

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Speaker 2: can do at this point. But but if you don't mind,

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Speaker 2: let's let's listen it. Let's take some questions from some listeners.

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Speaker 2: Is that okay?

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Speaker 3: Absolutely perfect?

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Speaker 2: Okay? Let me go to Rashid in Dorchester. Rashid, appreciate

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Speaker 2: your patience. You're the first up again with Professor Bino.

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Speaker 2: As easy. Rashida, I very much appreciate a question for

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Speaker 2: the professor.

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Speaker 4: Go right ahead, Rashid, sure, Professor, quick question.

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Speaker 5: It's kind of two.

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Speaker 4: Questions in one.

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Speaker 6: The first part of it is Normally, when there's discussions

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Speaker 6: about Iran, there's never any discussion about how.

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Speaker 1: The CIA and m I six over.

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Speaker 6: Through most of that who wanted to nationalize Iran's oil

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Speaker 6: and put the Ayatolas to power. It was it seems

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Speaker 6: like it was a Western problem that was created for

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Speaker 6: the country. And secondly, you know, as an American and

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Speaker 6: this is my opinion, Sir, I don't really feel like

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Speaker 6: it's my country's interest to involve itself in Iran's domestic disputes.

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Speaker 6: I think that the best solution is a peaceful one, that.

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Speaker 5: Is listing of economic sanctions to allow the people to

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Speaker 5: live normally in Iran and decide their faith. So, you know,

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Speaker 5: with that belief, why do you think we should involve

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Speaker 5: ourselves in something I mean, unfortunately that we created, But

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Speaker 5: I mean why is it an American interest actually averaging

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Speaker 5: change and risks?

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Speaker 2: Yeah?

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Speaker 4: War?

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Speaker 2: But by the way, Rehi, he hasn't said that yet,

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Speaker 2: So why don't we just phrase that as the question

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Speaker 2: as to a view of our history? Does he feel

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Speaker 2: that any American involvement at this point would be appropriate?

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Speaker 2: Because he is I never got my question on that.

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Speaker 2: I don't want to make an assumption about what he

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Speaker 2: might feel.

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Speaker 3: Okay, that's right.

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Speaker 2: Well, thank you Dan, Okay, thanks thanks Chid go right ahead, professor.

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Speaker 3: You know your reference to the nineteen fifty three coup, which,

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Speaker 3: as you pointed out, was organized and planned and carried

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Speaker 3: out by the CIA and MI six, the British Intelligence Service.

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Speaker 3: You're quite right that overthrew a democratic government of Prime

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Speaker 3: Minister Mostat there who had nationalized the Iranian oil industry.

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Speaker 3: But that does not really have much to do with

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Speaker 3: the goings on an Iran today. Let me point out

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Speaker 3: that as far as that coup was concerned, back in

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Speaker 3: nineteen fifty three, religious hierarchy was actually in support of

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Speaker 3: the overthrow of Mosatre, which is really quite a remarkable

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Speaker 3: the fact. And then you know, we have from nineteen

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Speaker 3: fifty three to nineteen seventy nine the government which was

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Speaker 3: headed by the King, the Shah of Iran, which quite again,

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Speaker 3: as I'm sure you all know, was very much a

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Speaker 3: pro Western government. What is going on today in Iran

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Speaker 3: really doesn't have very much to do with that period

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Speaker 3: and with those changes that occurred. I was going to

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Speaker 3: talk a little bit, if I may, about the current

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Speaker 3: uprising and the economic factors that are involved. In it,

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Speaker 3: if I may, This Iranian regime has also been a

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Speaker 3: very corrupt regime, and that is the fact that is

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Speaker 3: borne out by nearly all observers of the regime outside

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Speaker 3: of Iran, and many of them inside of Iran. It

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Speaker 3: has been facing a fiscal crisis. To illustrate that, let

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Speaker 3: me mention one fact, and that is the rate of

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Speaker 3: exchange between the foreign currency, let's say the American dollar

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Speaker 3: and the Iranian currency. At the time of the revolution

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Speaker 3: back in nineteen seventy nine, one American dollar was equal

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Speaker 3: to seven Iranian tomans, the unit of currency in Iran. Today,

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Speaker 3: the rate of exchange is one American dollar to one

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Speaker 3: hundred and forty seven thousand tomans, if you can imagine that,

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Speaker 3: and that is, by the way, you know, a fact,

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Speaker 3: not an opinion. It is the fact the most recent

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Speaker 3: rate of exchange one hundred and forty seven thousand tomans

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Speaker 3: for one American dollar. Going from one American dollar equals

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Speaker 3: to seven tomans at the beginning of this regime.

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Speaker 2: You can image to calculate what the percentage of inflation that.

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Speaker 3: Would write the inflation rate currency in Iran is between

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Speaker 3: forty to forty five percent per year. But the rate

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Speaker 3: of exchange is over and beyond that in terms of

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Speaker 3: the affordability of items such as medication, for example, that

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Speaker 3: needs to be imported from abroad, So there is inflation.

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Speaker 3: There is the rate of exchange which is incredible, and

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Speaker 3: then the various sanctions that have been imposed by the

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Speaker 3: United States and the European countries on Iran. So the

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Speaker 3: economic dimension of this crisis are really quite profound. And

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Speaker 3: that was in fact what began this most recent wave

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Speaker 3: of protests, as I mentioned, initially in the in the markets,

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Speaker 3: in the by the merchants in the bazaars of Iran.

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Speaker 2: So so it do you feel that that the US

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Speaker 2: the smartest thing for the US now is to allow

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Speaker 2: this revolution to proceed on its own, or you know,

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Speaker 2: the President has made comments and I know that Rashid

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Speaker 2: was it doesn't feel we should be involved at all.

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Speaker 2: I'm just wondering if you agree with Rashid or if

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Speaker 2: you see a different path.

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Speaker 3: Well, let's that is of course the sixty four thousand

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Speaker 3: dollars questions. That is what not only the US but

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Speaker 3: also the European countries are facing now. On the one hand,

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Speaker 3: can we not pay attention to can we not react

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Speaker 3: to the kind of oppression and killings that are going

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Speaker 3: on in Iran. I mean, we have made it very

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Speaker 3: clear that we stand for human rights and you know,

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Speaker 3: and the rule of law and so on, so we

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Speaker 3: cannot be impervious to that. We cannot ignore what is

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Speaker 3: going on, and the Iranian people expect the world to

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Speaker 3: be supportive of them. Now what kind of support, of course,

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Speaker 3: that is the question. That is the question. Does that

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Speaker 3: imply that we should intervene militarily. My position is that no,

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Speaker 3: we should not, because the consequences of a military intervention

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Speaker 3: in Iran could really be catastrophic. Iran has the capability

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Speaker 3: of reacting to it, you know, by their missiles, by

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Speaker 3: their attacking American bases in the region, by attacking friendly

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Speaker 3: governments even in the region, and so on. But that

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Speaker 3: doesn't mean that we should not become involved in some

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Speaker 3: way or form to serve notice to the Iranian government

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Speaker 3: that killings that are going on needs to be stuffed

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Speaker 3: and this kind of depression will not be tolerated by

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Speaker 3: the world's community. And there are rays of doing that, and.

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Speaker 2: We're going to talk about those ways in a moment,

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Speaker 2: But I have to take a quick commercial break. Rashid,

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Speaker 2: thank you for your questions. I appreciate it very much.

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Speaker 2: As always, thank you. We'll get to more phone calls

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Speaker 2: and more conversation.

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Speaker 1: Professor, thank you, most welcome.

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Speaker 3: Thank you.

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Speaker 2: We'll conversations with my guest, Professor Ali Banow Azizi, Boston College.

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Speaker 2: This is an incredibly important guest, and I would appreciate

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Speaker 2: everyone understanding that, uh not, not often do I have

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Speaker 2: a guest of this. Galiper to be very honest with you,

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Speaker 2: and we will be returning with Professor Azizi right after

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Speaker 2: a quick couple of quick messages.

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Speaker 4: It's nice with Dan Ray on.

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Speaker 1: Boston's News Radio.

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Speaker 2: We're talking about I round with Professor Ali Banawazizi of

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Speaker 2: Boston College. He's been at BC for just about a

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Speaker 2: half century and born in Iran, and he has an

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Speaker 2: incredible depth of knowledge about this situation which is percolating

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Speaker 2: half a world away. Let me go to Bob and

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Speaker 2: Rhode Island. Bob a quick question, if you'd be so

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Speaker 2: kind to my guest.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, I'll talk to you. Guess. I think he's got

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Speaker 4: a lot of knowledge. I wonder if he thinks Trump's

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Speaker 4: military that took out the Iranian deposits about five months

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Speaker 4: ago with his jet Bambas or.

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Speaker 1: Whatever he did.

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Speaker 4: Is that any effect question?

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Speaker 2: Well, thank you, that's a great, great question. Professor Bob

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Speaker 2: wants to know if the presidents strike US military strike

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Speaker 2: at the Iranian nuclear facilities earlier earlier, Well, I should

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Speaker 2: say last year actually had any impact pro or con

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Speaker 2: on what is going on in Iran tonight even as

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Speaker 2: we speak.

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Speaker 3: Well, of course, the purpose of that had to do

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Speaker 3: with Irans nuclear program, and unquestionably it has had an

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Speaker 3: impact on that program. It hasn't eliminated Iran's quest for

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Speaker 3: a nuclear capability. Uh, they have been continuing that and

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Speaker 3: and they have already reached the point where in principle

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Speaker 3: they could move towards weaponization of their program in a

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Speaker 3: matter of a year or two, according to estimates by

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Speaker 3: by agencies that have the expertise to to make those assessments.

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Speaker 3: But you know, the ongoing protests really don't have very

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Speaker 3: much to do with what happened at that time. Clearly,

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Speaker 3: you know, Onian regime was weakened by the attacks that Israel,

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Speaker 3: Israeli military and the US bombing made on the country.

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Speaker 3: But the ongoing protest movements really have different causes, uh,

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Speaker 3: and and had a very different course.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, as you said, mostly mostly economic at this point, Bob,

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Speaker 2: thank you for the questions. I appreciate it. Let me

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Speaker 2: go next very quickly, very quickly to my friend Will

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Speaker 2: on Long Island. Will, I'm asking for a direct question,

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Speaker 2: Go right ahead.

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Speaker 1: Shirt, Okay, do you think that the United States bombing

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Speaker 1: a primary nuclear facility that were probably very coveted by

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Speaker 1: the Iranians expose them in any way to really be

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Speaker 1: viewed as not the military power that anybody thinks they are.

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Speaker 1: They weren't even able to fire a rocket. They didn't

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Speaker 1: even see us coming, So do you think that exposes

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Speaker 1: them in any way, which is why they're so willing

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Speaker 1: to all of a sudden they're preemptively looking to talk

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Speaker 1: to Trump to negotiate, since they've just saw us walk

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Speaker 1: into Venezuela and take their president basically without even them

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Speaker 1: firing a shot.

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Speaker 7: And by the way, just to support what your question is,

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Speaker 7: the base specific question is the President today has said

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Speaker 7: that I guess there have been back channel conversations with

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Speaker 7: some representatives of.

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Speaker 2: The Iranian government, even though they are maintaining rallies in

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Speaker 2: support of the administration in Tehran as you would expect.

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Speaker 2: So Will's question a professor essentially is do you think that,

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Speaker 2: putting aside the military impact, that this might have focused

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Speaker 2: Iran a little bit more on what they can and

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Speaker 2: cannot do in terms of the protesters, or will that

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Speaker 2: have no impact on how they decide to try to

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Speaker 2: maintain control.

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Speaker 3: You know, I really believe that the two cases that

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Speaker 3: you've referred to are quite separate. You're I completely agree

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Speaker 3: that after the so called Twelve Day War, which was

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Speaker 3: last June June of twenty twenty five, you know, with

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Speaker 3: the Israeli attacks followed by the decisive bombings of those

439
00:34:47,040 --> 00:34:51,359
Speaker 3: two sites nuclear sites by the United States, that they've

440
00:34:51,440 --> 00:34:57,200
Speaker 3: become very cautious on that front. They realize that any

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00:34:57,760 --> 00:35:04,880
Speaker 3: attempt for them to who recognize their nuclear program would

442
00:35:04,960 --> 00:35:12,080
Speaker 3: unquestionably be confronted with and UH and and you know,

443
00:35:12,160 --> 00:35:17,440
Speaker 3: attacked militarily by the United States and Israel. That's a

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00:35:17,520 --> 00:35:21,120
Speaker 3: separate issue and a very important issue, and perhaps even

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00:35:21,520 --> 00:35:26,520
Speaker 3: more important in terms of the response by the US

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00:35:26,560 --> 00:35:32,200
Speaker 3: and Israel, both of whom have clearly stated that they're

447
00:35:32,239 --> 00:35:37,560
Speaker 3: not going to allow Iran to become a nuclear a

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00:35:37,640 --> 00:35:44,440
Speaker 3: nuclear reference power. But the ongoing protests, Uh, these are

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00:35:44,520 --> 00:35:50,800
Speaker 3: domestic issues, and as I think we have already mentioned,

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00:35:52,239 --> 00:35:57,239
Speaker 3: the question now is what should be the response of

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00:35:57,560 --> 00:36:02,200
Speaker 3: the world community, European, the United States, as well as

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00:36:02,239 --> 00:36:07,520
Speaker 3: other countries including neighbors to the ongoings in Iran today

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00:36:08,320 --> 00:36:11,200
Speaker 3: in response to the movements that we are.

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Speaker 1: Can I ask a follow up?

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00:36:13,800 --> 00:36:16,840
Speaker 2: Will? I'm flat one and out of time? I appreciate you.

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00:36:17,120 --> 00:36:19,799
Speaker 1: Can I ask them one question for us though? About us?

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00:36:19,960 --> 00:36:22,160
Speaker 1: Do you think this would be a good opportunity for

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00:36:22,239 --> 00:36:25,279
Speaker 1: our president to re engage the UN and the rest

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00:36:25,320 --> 00:36:27,799
Speaker 1: of the world and ask them for some help on

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00:36:27,880 --> 00:36:29,879
Speaker 1: what we should do with Iran with that electricality?

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00:36:29,960 --> 00:36:32,640
Speaker 2: Thank you, thanks well, appreciate it. So should we try

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00:36:32,680 --> 00:36:33,440
Speaker 2: to involve.

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00:36:34,560 --> 00:36:38,520
Speaker 3: Very quickly to that? Yes, iheartedly agree that our presidents

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00:36:38,520 --> 00:36:42,520
Speaker 3: should try to work with European powers and with the

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00:36:42,600 --> 00:36:45,400
Speaker 3: U N and and so on. Yes, of course, on

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00:36:45,560 --> 00:36:48,960
Speaker 3: all matters, not only rely you know, related to your own,

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00:36:49,000 --> 00:36:50,440
Speaker 3: but more generally speaking.

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00:36:50,520 --> 00:36:53,960
Speaker 2: Yes, all right, well, thank you very much for cooperative.

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00:36:54,000 --> 00:36:56,920
Speaker 2: Thank you professional. Final question for me, and I'd love

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00:36:56,960 --> 00:37:02,879
Speaker 2: to have you back at some point if possible. How

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00:37:02,920 --> 00:37:08,279
Speaker 2: do you see this uprising ending? And I'm sure that.

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00:37:08,360 --> 00:37:10,400
Speaker 2: I'm not asking you to predict it, but if you

473
00:37:10,520 --> 00:37:15,120
Speaker 2: had to give it a percentage weight as to it

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00:37:15,200 --> 00:37:20,600
Speaker 2: is ultimately put down or somehow the substantial changes occur,

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00:37:22,719 --> 00:37:25,240
Speaker 2: which is more likely in your mind? Is this something

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00:37:25,320 --> 00:37:30,920
Speaker 2: that we need to I guess invests some great hope.

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00:37:30,719 --> 00:37:41,480
Speaker 3: In Unfortunately, I believe that the regime has the repressive

478
00:37:41,640 --> 00:37:46,440
Speaker 3: power to put down this uprising, and I think that

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00:37:46,600 --> 00:37:51,040
Speaker 3: is already happening in the past couple of days, that

480
00:37:51,440 --> 00:37:56,200
Speaker 3: the direct shooting in the heads of some of the

481
00:37:56,200 --> 00:38:01,480
Speaker 3: demonstrators and in their chess and so on, have, you know,

482
00:38:01,560 --> 00:38:08,160
Speaker 3: created enough fear in the people to back off. So

483
00:38:08,280 --> 00:38:13,360
Speaker 3: it's possible that the uprising may not bring about any

484
00:38:13,719 --> 00:38:20,240
Speaker 3: real fundamental change or regime collapse or anything of the sort. However,

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00:38:20,800 --> 00:38:24,839
Speaker 3: I believe the opposition to the regime will continue in

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00:38:24,960 --> 00:38:29,279
Speaker 3: various forms, and it will the fires will be rekindled

487
00:38:30,440 --> 00:38:35,520
Speaker 3: again and again. This is not a regime that has

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00:38:36,040 --> 00:38:39,840
Speaker 3: the acceptance of and the support of its own people anymore,

489
00:38:40,640 --> 00:38:43,680
Speaker 3: and that, of course, on top of the economic crisis

490
00:38:43,680 --> 00:38:46,840
Speaker 3: that the country is using is facing.

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00:38:47,600 --> 00:38:49,919
Speaker 2: Yes, well, professor, thank you so much for your time.

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00:38:50,080 --> 00:38:52,680
Speaker 2: I would like to reserve the right to invite.

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00:38:52,360 --> 00:38:56,880
Speaker 3: You back, be happy to with you time.

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00:38:57,080 --> 00:39:00,319
Speaker 2: I thought the questions from the callers were excellent, and

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00:39:00,360 --> 00:39:02,960
Speaker 2: I think that you've given us a much better sense

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00:39:03,480 --> 00:39:05,960
Speaker 2: of what's going on halfway around the world, and for

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00:39:06,040 --> 00:39:08,840
Speaker 2: that I am gratefully indebted to you, so thank you

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00:39:08,920 --> 00:39:12,920
Speaker 2: so much. I know that you listen to Nightside, and

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00:39:13,400 --> 00:39:17,799
Speaker 2: I'll give you a call tomorrow, and I'd like to

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00:39:17,840 --> 00:39:21,160
Speaker 2: try to get you back on sooner rather than later,

501
00:39:21,239 --> 00:39:22,080
Speaker 2: if that's possible.

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00:39:22,160 --> 00:39:25,319
Speaker 3: Thank you so much, Thank you very much, many thanks

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00:39:25,400 --> 00:39:29,440
Speaker 3: also to your listeners and their excellent questions.

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00:39:29,600 --> 00:39:35,440
Speaker 2: Thank you. Professor Ali Bano Azizi Boston College. If you

505
00:39:35,520 --> 00:39:39,560
Speaker 2: can google him, I think you will be mightily impressed,

506
00:39:39,560 --> 00:39:43,560
Speaker 2: as I am, with his background and his knowledge. I

507
00:39:43,600 --> 00:39:47,080
Speaker 2: would like thank you, Professor. I would like to continue

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00:39:47,640 --> 00:39:54,080
Speaker 2: the conversation about Iran and what if anything, we might

509
00:39:54,680 --> 00:40:00,239
Speaker 2: contemplate to do. And it's zero to one hundred your

510
00:40:00,320 --> 00:40:03,120
Speaker 2: calls on the other side of the eleven o'clock news

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Speaker 2: six one, seven, two, five, four, ten thirty, six one seven,

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Speaker 2: nine three, one ten thirty Night Side with Dan Ray