According to sources who spoke with The Telegraph, Iranian officials now face a dangerous situation where distinguishing genuine loyalty from Israeli infiltration has become nearly impossible. One senior Iranian official told The Telegraph: "Many officials, including within the Sepah [IRGC], are doing everything they can to convince the system that they haven't done anything wrong, since it's obvious to everyone now that the Israelis have massively infiltrated several agencies."

Officials fear Israeli agents embedded within security services may be filing false accusations to eliminate loyal personnel. An Iranian official interviewed by The Telegraph explained: "Trust is one issue, but what's becoming an even greater concern is the growing number of people who are, in one way or another, betraying the system."

The twelve-day Iran-Israel war in June 2025 exposed extensive Israeli Mossad penetration of Iran's security apparatus. Israel's operation killed several top IRGC commanders, including IRGC chief Hossein Salami and armed forces chief Mohammed Bagheri, demonstrating the depth of intelligence infiltration. Iranian officials now face growing paranoia as they struggle to distinguish genuine threats from false accusations designed to remove loyal insiders.​

Iran has reached record execution levels in 2025, with over 1,000 people executed by September – the highest figure in at least 15 years, The Telegraph reports. The death of Omid Sarlak in November, whose bullet-riddled body was found hours after he posted a video burning Supreme Leader Khamenei's image, sparked widespread protests with mourners chanting "Death to Khamenei" and burning images of the leader.​

Iran faces its worst drought in decades, with the Amir Kabir dam northwest of Tehran at only 8% capacity. Rainfall has decreased by 89% compared to long-term averages, and the number of dams below 5% capacity has increased from 8 to 32, The Telegraph reports. President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that Tehran residents may need to evacuate by mid-December if conditions don't improve. Severe air pollution has forced school closures across multiple cities.​

Despite these challenges, experts assess that the regime remains stable, largely due to nationalist sentiment generated during the war with Israel. However, Iran faces increasing international isolation following the collapse of the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposition of UN sanctions. The regime has begun emphasizing ancient Persian Empire imagery rather than revolutionary Islamic messaging to rally public support, as evidenced by the installation of a replica of a 1,700-year-old relief sculpture in central Tehran depicting Roman Emperor Valerian kneeling before Persian King Shapur I with the message, "You will kneel before Iran again," The Telegraph reports.

Public dissatisfaction with conditions in Iran has reached 92% according to polling conducted for the president's office, The Telegraph reports. The combination of intelligence failures, environmental crises, economic pressures, and domestic repression creates a volatile situation, though the regime's security apparatus remains capable of suppressing dissent through mass arrests and executions.

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In response to the intelligence findings, Albanese announced dramatic measures, including expelling the Iranian ambassador from Australia, closing the Australian embassy in Tehran, and advancing the designation of the Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization. This marks the first time Australia has expelled a foreign ambassador since World War II.

According to intelligence findings presented by Australian intelligence chief Mike Burgess, Iran was behind the arson attack on the kosher restaurant "Louis Continental Kitchen" in Sydney on October 20, 2024, and the torching of the "Adass Israel" synagogue in Melbourne on December 6. "It is likely that Iran is also responsible for additional attacks," Burgess added, referring to the unprecedented wave of antisemitic attacks that have struck the Jewish community since October 7. "Iran's actions are completely intolerable. They endangered lives, terrorized the community, and tore apart our social fabric," Burgess said. "Iran and its proxies literally lit the matches and fanned the flames."

In a comprehensive report published last July, the British Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee warned that Iran poses a "growing and unpredictable" threat to Britain, noting a "sharp rise" in physical threats against regime opponents. Committee Chairman Lord Beamish noted that "Iran has a high risk appetite when conducting offensive activity, and its intelligence services are well-equipped in significant areas of asymmetric power."

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In 2024, ASIO identified the IRGC as the mastermind behind fires at a Sydney kosher restaurant and a Melbourne synagogue. "These were extraordinary and dangerous acts of aggression orchestrated by a foreign nation on Australian soil," Albanese declared during a press briefing.

Ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi and three diplomatic staff have one week to leave, a move unprecedented since World War II. Australia has also suspended its embassy operations in Iran to ensure staff safety and issued a travel warning for citizens to depart Iran promptly.

The IRGC – Iran's elite military force, notorious for quelling internal protests and funding Middle Eastern militias – will now be classified as a terrorist entity, aligning with a 2019 US designation. "I've said many times that the Australian people want two things: They want killing in the Middle East to stop, and they don't want conflict in the Middle East brought here. Iran has sought to do just that," Albanese emphasized.

"They have sought to harm and terrify Jewish Australians and to sow hatred and division in our community," he continued. ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess detailed the IRGC's use of a sophisticated proxy network. "This was directed by the IRGC through a series of overseas cut-out facilitators to coordinators that found their way to tasking Australians," he stated.

The first incident occurred in October 2024, when Lewis' Continental Kitchen, a 50-year-old kosher eatery near Sydney's Bondi Beach, was set ablaze. In December 2024, Melbourne's Adass Israel Synagogue was torched by assailants using flammable liquid. Victoria's counter-terrorism unit has charged two men, with a third arrest made recently.

Since Israel's response to Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack, antisemitic acts in Australia have spiked. "ASIO is still investigating possible Iranian involvement in a number of other attacks. But I want to stress, we do not believe the regime is responsible for every act of antisemitism in Australia," Burgess clarified.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke condemned Iran's actions as an "extraordinary attack" that marked a "new and totally unacceptable low." "Australia was attacked and Australia was harmed," he asserted. Foreign Minister Penny Wong warned Australians against traveling to Iran, noting limited government protection. "I urge any Australian who might be considering traveling to Iran, please do not do so. Our message is, if you are an Australian in Iran, leave now if it is safe to do so," she urged.

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"Those who are left will be at the forefront of any Iranian attempt to reach a nuclear bomb, hence they will automatically become targets for Israel, as Israel has shown in the past. I have no doubt about it. Any scientist who deals with the nuclear issue will be eliminated or will be threatened with elimination," he stated.

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Reports from Western media sources suggest Khamenei's authority has suffered significant damage, with some indicating he has delegated portions of his power to Revolutionary Guards commanders. Nevertheless, the ultimate choice between capitulating to Trump's demands or engaging in a protracted war of attrition remains solely in Khamenei's hands. Understanding the man behind these critical decisions may provide insight into Iran's future trajectory.

Born in 1939 in Mashad, Ali Khamenei emerged as the second child in a family of eight, raised by an impoverished Shiite cleric from rural Iran. His formative years were devoted to religious education, eventually becoming a disciple of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the architect of Iran's Islamic Revolution. Though Khamenei never achieved prominence within Iran's religious establishment, the 1979 revolution elevated him to Khomeini's inner circle, culminating in his election as the Islamic Republic's president in 1981.

Dr. Thamar Eilam Gindin, an Iran specialist at the University of Haifa's Ezri Center, explained Khamenei's ascent. "Khamenei excelled at one particular skill – surviving Khomeini's relentless purges. Khomeini's suspicious and paranoid nature meant that Khamenei found himself rising to the top almost by default," she noted. "He lacked religious gravitas and never even attained ayatollah status during this period."

Tears of blood

Khomeini's death in 1989 dramatically altered Iran's political landscape. "Khamenei was hardly the frontrunner to succeed the revolutionary leader," Dr. Eilam Gindin observed. "Khomeini's son, widely regarded as the natural heir, declined the position. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, then Iran's president, championed Khamenei's candidacy, believing he could manipulate this seemingly weak figure. This calculation proved disastrously wrong, a fact Rafsanjani later acknowledged."

To qualify for supreme leadership, Khamenei received a hasty promotion to ayatollah status in 1989. "The selection committee abandoned traditional requirements, including the expectation that candidates publish religious scholarship. They rationalized this by claiming Khamenei faithfully adhered to Khomeini's teachings," Eilam Gindin explained. "In a now-infamous speech before his selection, Khamenei declared that 'the nation that chooses me to lead it will weep tears of blood.' While intended as false humility, this prophecy appears remarkably prescient today."

Military and Revolutionary Guard leaders initially viewed Khamenei as manageable, but he swiftly consolidated power and systematically dismantled competing authority centers. His methods included electoral manipulation, elimination of oversight bodies, and removal of key ministries from elected control. "Khamenei operates a pure dictatorship disguised behind democratic theater," Dr. Eilam Gindin assessed. "He maintains facades of competitive elections and institutional balance while exercising absolute behind-the-scenes control." Revolutionary Guard forces and their Basij auxiliaries routinely suppressed protests against manipulated election outcomes.

While publicly opposing nuclear weapons development, Khamenei privately directed Iran's nuclear program toward weapons capability. This strategic gamble may represent his career's gravest miscalculation. With Israel now conducting unrestricted operations against Iranian nuclear infrastructure, supported by American intelligence, Khamenei confronts a menu of unappealing options.

"Two paths remain available to Khamenei," Dr. Eilam Gindin analyzed. "He can abandon his pride and negotiate with the United States, or he can choose confrontation and extended warfare, risking both his regime and his life." However, she doubts the supreme leader will accept a compromise. "Honor holds supreme value for Khamenei. He would rather drag the entire regime into destruction than surrender his dignity."

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As part of this initiative, American authorities released details about Kimia Part Sivan company – a drone manufacturing arm of the IRGC's Quds Force. According to the State Department's rewards program announcement, the company's executives conducted flight tests of unmanned aerial vehicles for the Revolutionary Guards and acquired high-quality drone components from foreign companies.

"Iran-based KIPAS senior staff members Hasan Arambunezhad, Abolfazl Ramazanzadeh Moshkani, Mehdi Ghaffari Naghneh, Reza Nahar Dani, Abbas Sartaji, and Hadi Jamshidi Zavaraki have been actively involved in the company's testing, development, and supply of drones, particularly for Iranian-aligned militant groups in Iraq, Yemen, and Syria," the State Department said.

Some team members had sanctions imposed on them previously in April 2024. Following these sanctions, all property and financial interests of the company and these individuals located within US jurisdiction or under American control have been frozen.

Video: US offers $15M for information on IRGC operatives / Credit: US State Department

In a released video, the US revealed that one of the Iranian drone company's centers is located in eastern Isfahan province. The video emphasized that while the Iranian economy struggles, the Revolutionary Guards continue investing resources in manufacturing and transporting weapons abroad to fuel regional violence and fund their terrorist operations.

US authorities call on anyone possessing information about the senior team members, their associates, or their financial networks to contact the rewards program through a special link.

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According to reporting by The Globe and Mail, Canadian law enforcement authorities recently foiled an Iranian plot to assassinate Irwin Cotler, a prominent human rights advocate and outspoken critic of Tehran's leadership.

Authorities identified two suspects in the assassination plot, though their current status, whether arrested or fled, remains unclear. Cotler was informed on Thursday that the threat level against him had been significantly reduced.

The Jewish 84-year-old has been under 24/7 Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) protection for over a year following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack in Israel. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) informed him he was a high-profile target of Iran. His security detail includes bulletproof vehicles, heavily armed officers and additional protective measures.

Since 2008, he has spearheaded a global campaign to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization. He has also represented Iranian political prisoners and strongly supports Israel. In June, following opposition party pressure, Canada joined the United States in declaring the IRGC a banned terrorist group. Ottawa cut diplomatic relations with Iran over a decade ago. Cotler served as Canada's first special envoy on Holocaust remembrance and combatting antisemitism from 2020 to 2023. He currently chairs the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights internationally.

Today marks 6 months since the black sabbath of October 7th. 1200 brutally murdered, 250 taken hostage,& grave acts of torture & mass sexual violence by Hamas.

134 hostages remain in captivity. Freeing the hostages is standalone humanitarian issue, moral duty, & legal obligation pic.twitter.com/3ysPHrd7l1

— Irwin Cotler (@IrwinCotler) April 7, 2024

 The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has also contacted Cotler regarding an unsealed New York indictment involving an Iranian murder-for-hire operation, the source said. While not named in the indictment, the FBI indicated to Cotler that his name emerged during their investigation.

On Oct. 22, the US Justice Department charged senior IRGC official Ruhollah Bazghandi in connection with a 2022 plot to kill American human-rights activist Masih Alinejad, allegedly using Eastern European criminal organizations in New York. "That is happening more and more with intelligence services using criminals to do work for them, and it gives them plausible deniability," said Alan Treddenick, a former CSIS station chief in Saudi Arabia.

Earlier this month, the US Justice Department charged Farhad Shakeri, described as an Iranian government operative previously imprisoned in America for robbery, in an alleged IRGC-ordered plot to kill Donald Trump and Alinejad. Shakeri remains at large in Iran. Two other men face charges for allegedly being recruited by Shakeri to surveil and kill Alinejad.

Daniel Stanton, former CSIS senior manager and current director of the national-security program at the University of Ottawa Professional Development Institute, who recently hosted Alinejad, said Iran targets high-profile critics like Cotler and Alinejad as a warning to others.

"Regimes like Iran and also India want to hit the most high-profile, outspoken critics and dissidents because that sends a message to the people who don't have that status to basically shut up," Stanton said. "A lot of these intelligence agencies find it difficult to operate in countries like Canada and the United States, so they have to hire unscrupulous proxies to carry out the dirty work and that is easy to detect."

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei called the allegations a "repulsive" plot by Israel and Iranian dissidents to "complicate matters between America and Iran."

US authorities say the IRGC's elite Quds Force has historically targeted critics and recently began outsourcing assassination plots to organized crime groups and violent criminals. Iran's Quds Force operates as a clandestine wing of the IRGC, responsible for foreign operations, including arming Hezbollah and Hamas and conducting assassinations.

Victims of Oct 7 sexual violence deserve recognition, justice & accountability- not gaslighting, silence, and denial.
This is not a political issue; it's about human rights.
Our Chair, @JayRosenzweig & Dr. @CochavElkayam call for truth & justice in this @Jerusalem_Post op-ed https://t.co/1i1yw0Wj9P

— Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights (@TheRWCHR) November 15, 2024

 Cotler, a renowned international human-rights lawyer, has criticized many authoritarian governments, including Iran, for its role in the 2020 downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, which killed about 55 Canadians and 30 permanent residents, as well as Tehran's funding of Hamas.

He warned that authoritarian regimes are waging a war against Western countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and many of those in Europe "through three primary methods – electoral interference, transnational repression, and the spreading of harmful disinformation."

In 2015, Cotler founded the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights, a Montreal-based organization dedicated to promoting human rights, advocating for political prisoners, and combatting injustice around the world. The group works in memory of Wallenberg, a Swedish diplomat who saved 100,000 Jews during the Second World War by issuing them diplomatic passports and sheltering them in safe houses.

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Two high-ranking members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps perished in a light aircraft crash in southeastern Iran, Al-Arabiya news network reported. According to the report, both officers were conducting an "operational exercise" when the incident occurred.

Regional media outlets identified the deceased as Commander Hamid Mazandarani, who led the Nineveh Brigade in Golestan province, and IRGC pilot Hamid Jandaqi. Both served as ground force operatives in the Revolutionary Guards.

The fatal crash took place during an operational exercise held in memory of "Security Martyrs" in the Saravan region.

Images of the crashed light aircraft were subsequently circulated across Arab media platforms.

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A key Iranian missile production facility has been destroyed in what appears to be a precision strike, according to satellite imagery analysis conducted by the Associated Press. The targeted complex, located at a Revolutionary Guards base, played a crucial role in Iran's ballistic missile development program.

NEW HIGH-DEF SATTELITE PHOTOS FROM IRAN: AP has released new satellite imagery of the Israeli strikes on the IRGC Shahroud base showing the damage; pay attention to the central blue building. pic.twitter.com/6IP8PqY6uu

— Monika (@Monika_is_His) October 29, 2024

 "While we cannot definitively say whether Iranian production capabilities were completely neutralized, as some experts suggest, or merely damaged, we now have sufficient photographic evidence to confirm substantial impact and destruction," says Fabian Hinz, an Iran missile program specialist at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Washington.

Located in Shahrud, a town in the rural Semnan province northeast of Tehran, the facility operated in a sparsely populated area.  Analysis of high-resolution imagery purchased from Planet Labs by AP shows a central building at the Shahrud base sustained direct hits, with multiple vehicles visible around the impact site. Three auxiliary facilities nearby also suffered damage, along with a newly constructed hangar.

"The presence of protective earthen barriers around this building suggests it handled highly explosive materials," notes Hinz, who has extensively studied the site and believes it served as a solid rocket fuel production facility. Satellite photos taken before the strike show large containers near the building that likely housed Kheibar Shekan and Fateh-1 ballistic missiles.

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The largest opposition party in Germany has called for a dramatic overhaul of the country's approach to Iran. A current frontrunner in polls, the Christian Democratic Union is pushing for a tougher stance, including measures to weaken the Iranian regime and advocating for the European Union to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.

The Iranian regime's long-standing record of funding global terrorism, destabilizing the Middle East, and threatening Israel's existence with support from Hamas and Hezbollah has been met with a policy of appeasement during the tenure of Angela Merkel, who led the CDU. Now, her own party appears poised for a significant policy shift.

A position paper on Iran, drafted by CDU lawmakers, advocates for a fundamental change in Berlin's s approach to Tehran, asserting that under its Islamist leadership, the Islamic Republic has become an unequivocal enemy of Germany across all domains. The time has come for Germany to act decisively and radically alter its stance toward Iran.

The paper outlines a strategy to weaken and isolate the regime to end its brutal oppression of its own people and mitigate threats to regional and global stability. Key proposals include pushing for the EU to designate the IRGC as a terror group and forming an anti-Iran coalition with moderate Arab states, including signatories of the Abraham Accords and Saudi Arabia.

Addressing Iran's nuclear ambitions, the CDU lawmakers call for a halt to the program. They propose that Germany, France, Britain, and the United States, in collaboration with other partners, develop a coherent and actionable strategy to prevent Iran's nuclear armament. The document advocates for imposing additional sanctions on Tehran and more rigorously enforcing existing commercial sanctions against countries that aid in their circumvention.

The policy paper also recommends taking action against clerics who persecute women in Iran and proposes banning any institution in Germany that serves as an information source or influence channel for the Iranian regime. As an immediate step, it calls for the closure of the Islamic Center in Hamburg.

The IRGC is currently designated as a terrorist group by Israel, the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and Sweden.

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