The Iranian Enigma
Persia, also known nowadays as Iran, is a country with centuries-long history; once again is on the world’s stage. In the past, they were a regional power with large territory spanning the Middle East region. They had great leaders whose wisdom is appreciated even nowadays. Cyrus the Great was an example of a visionary ruler who freed the Jews (enslaved by the Babylonians who also destroyed the first temple in Jerusalem) back to Israel. He sent them back to their homeland, but he also encouraged them to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem and practice their religion.
The Persians had their language derived from the Aramaic language (the same roots as that of Hebrew) with a corresponding alphabet. With time, the Persian religion evolved into the Zoroastrian religion.
In the 7th century, the Arabs, under their new spiritual leader Mohammad, started to spread north, west, and east, colonizing many nations of the region. Their cruel rule was via the sword, enforcing their captured countries to erase their history, change their language, and convert to the Muslim religion. Their treatment of those who refused to convert (Dhimma) was brutal and demanded that they become second-class citizens who had to pay protection money (Jizya) to survive.
Persia fell to the Muslim armies and underwent the same faith. Their Zoroastrian religion became Islam, their alphabet became Arabic, and their history seems to have vanished. The Muslim armies could marry any woman while having at least four wives; thus, Arab blood in the colonized nations grew exponentially. The same happened to other countries such as Egypt, where the majority (with possible exceptions, the Coptic Christians) are Arabs with no longer a direct link to the ancient Egyptians. The same faith fell upon the Phoenicians and the Berbers of North Africa.
Around 1935 the Shah of Persia insisted on calling Persia Iran, or the land of Aryans. In 1978–1979 when the Iranian revolution disposed of the Shah and installed a Theocracy under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Shia branch of Islam became the dominant oppressive government of Iran. The new reality has created historical amnesia as the Muslims tried to erase the nation's history, with few exceptions to the past glorious achievements of the empire.
Current events show that the Islamic republic is trying to build up its influence around the region to become the empire it once was. However, with their selective memory, they wish to erase Israel off the map. It is not because they love the Palestinians, Sunni Muslims (historically enemies), but they want to have their wings over the Middle East devoid of any other religions. Claiming that Israel never existed goes against the historical facts which Iran wishes to ignore. Also, they want to control Jerusalem as the rest of the Muslim world, specifically Turkey, which also suffers from megalomania, and hopes to resurrect the Caliphate of the ancient Ottoman Empire.
With the ruthless ruling of the Mullahs and ongoing violations of human rights, the Europeans seem eager to welcome the current Iranian regime into their fold. They refuse to drag Iran to the ICC; however, they are willing to rake Israel over the coals even though the fabricated complaints are by a non-state entity (both Iran and Israel are signatories to the Rome Statutes of the ICC, but neither one ratified it). The ICC refused to take Syria’s rulers to court for killing well over 500,000 of their citizens. So, where is the moral high ground? Are these the European Humanitarian values? Is money via trade the only issue driving the Europeans to look the other way and ignore the current Iranian regime?
The zealously of the Iranian dictatorship is dangerous to the free world since it is not driven by reason but rather by religion and the desire to dominate others. Unfortunately, the Iranian people, who had a close relationship with Israel before the turmoil of the revolution, are the ones to suffer. Becoming a pariah among nations does not help the ordinary people who fear the religion-driven dictatorship where any independent thought ends up being silenced by torture and death. The Mullahs of Iran wish to have a nuclear weapon as a trump card over any threat that challenges their authority. Let the people starve while resources get spent on tools of death to assure that the dictatorship will survive.
So how can an ancient civilization, such a Persia, let its leaders take them along such a disastrous path? With no natural enemies around Iran but only the desire to dominate others, this Islamic Republic is a danger to the free world.
When will the Iranians rebel and get rid of their Imams once and for all? Iranians are way too clever of a nation to let the mullahs subjugate them back into the 7th century. Had they gone back to their original culture and overthrew the Islamic noose around their neck, they would be a member nation of the free world contributing to it in every way.
It is too early to predict what the current regime will do in light of its aggression in the Middle East. However, chaos and blood-letting are no solution to the present tense situation that the Islamic Republic is causing.
GAB