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Geopolitics · Iran · Patronage Network · Regime Stability
Iran's ruling clerical establishment maintains its grip on power through an extensive ideological and patronage network, leveraging schools, mosques, and financial incentives to enforce loyalty, despite widespread public disbelief in its doctrines, according to experts Benny Sabti and Banafsheh Zand.
Sabti, an Iran expert at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), recounts receiving a Persian translation of "Mein Kampf" as a school prize, illustrating the regime's early indoctrination efforts. Banafsheh Zand, an Iranian-American journalist and editor of the Iran So Far Away Substack, asserts that the Islamic Republic uses faith as a tool for political control, likening its structure to a "mafia." The regime reinforces loyalty through programs tied to the Basij militia, offering benefits such as jobs, housing, and education to aligned families.
Sabti details 16 propaganda bodies and a university dedicated to converting Sunnis to Shiism, exporting the revolution. Despite these extensive efforts, Sabti believes indoctrination has "stopped working," and Zand notes outward compliance often stems from fear of punishment, with Iran's cultural identity remaining intact.
The regime ultimately relies on "money, weapons and propaganda" to stay in power.
