The Commander of the Quds Force at the Diplomacy and Resistance Conference

The internal pressures within Iran cannot be ignored as a factor that could lead to war. The regime is currently grappling with a battered economy, exacerbated by renewed global sanctions and the physical destruction caused by the June 12-day war. In such environments, hardline elements within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) often advocate for external conflict as a means to suppress domestic dissent and unify the population under a nationalist banner. By framing the struggle as a defensive "holy war" against an existential foe, the leadership seeks to justify the economic hardships faced by the Iranian people, potentially making an escalation more palatable to a government desperate to maintain its grip on power.