January 27, 2026
For the past few weeks, I have awakened each morning and looked at my phone for updates coming out of Iran. Protests erupted several weeks ago and were met with a brutal response by Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Inflation is out of control, and people took to the streets because they could no longer afford basic necessities. Today, 1,000,000 rials are equivalent to approximately $1 USD. This severe inflation has resulted from international sanctions imposed over Iran’s refusal to curb its nuclear program. The Ayatollah has not put the people of Iran first, instead advancing an ideology rooted in “down with Israel, down with the U.S.”
To suppress the protests, internet access was cut off, primarily to limit communication between protest leaders. Over the course of several days, reports began to emerge that the IRGC had killed nearly 20,000 protesters (exact numbers could not be independently verified). Iran has posed a threat to Israel and Jews around the world for decades. The Iranian regime has supported global terror, funneling financial resources—despite being an oil-rich nation—to proxy groups including Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis. In 1994, Iranian-backed Hezbollah bombed the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) in Buenos Aires. Years of repeated threats against Israel have culminated in several rounds of ballistic missile attacks over the past two years, causing death and widespread destruction across Israeli cities.
In recent weeks I have spent time trying to better understand the implications of these uprisings. For those looking to learn more, I recommend the following podcasts:
Dan Senor’s Call Me Back
January 5: After Venezuela, is Iran Next? With guest Karim Sadjapour
January 12: If Iran Falls, What then? With guest Karim Sadjapour
Ask Haviv Anything
Breaking Iran’s Machinery of Oppression
For Heaven’s Sake
January 13: Iran: When the Story Changes
These podcasts offer a deep-dive into revolutions and societal changes.
Perhaps the most important question is why we should be concerned here in America. Since the Iranian Revolution of 1979, the Islamist regime has ruled with an iron fist. It has brutally suppressed its own people while advancing a deep hostility toward the West. As Jews, we know this regime has repeatedly threatened Israel, funding proxy networks with the explicit goal of Israel’s destruction.
Last week, the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) expressed support for the Iranian people, many of whom have lost their lives opposing the regime. As the largest sponsor of state terrorism, Iran’s continued support of terror organizations threatens the stability of the Middle East and the safety of populations around the world. The CCAR wrote:
“Centuries before democracy was common, our rabbinic sages decreed that a ruler may only lead a people with their consent (Talmud Brachot 55a). The Iranian regime has forfeited its moral authority to rule the nation and has now lost the popular support required to remain in power. Their reach goes well beyond its own boundaries to impose its terror in the Middle East and the western hemisphere. For the sake of a greater peace that begins in Iran, it is time for the people of Iran to be sovereign.”
Our hearts go out to the suffering Iranian people. While we may feel powerless to effect change, we can acknowledge their extraordinary bravery and hope for a future in which they experience the freedom they yearn for. As Jews, we have always stood with the oppressed. In this moment, we pray for the Iranian people in their suffering and hope they will one day celebrate their liberation.
Listening to experts, it remains unclear whether a regime change will happen in the near future. According to Karim Sadjapour, there are five key factors for a regime to fall:
1. Fiscal Crisis
2. Divided Elites
3. Opposition that starts to cohere
4. Shared narrative of resistance
5. A favorable international environment
Sadjapour argues that the elites are not divided. The IRGC remains loyal to the Ayatollah, and significant segments of the population still support the regime. This loyalty may be the key factor preventing regime change at this time.
I am also struggling with another reality. Over the past several years, voices denouncing Israel have flooded social media and filled the streets in protest. Yet many of those voices have remained silent as the Iranian regime has murders its own citizens, with the singular focus on remaining in power. The silence of their defenders is deafening, and the double standard is deeply troubling.
As hours go by, I join countless others in prayer, hoping for strength and safety for the Iranian people. May they one day be free to chart their own path toward prosperity and live in the light of freedom.
Rabbi Rick Kellner