Iran International
Moderate voices in Tehran are warning that the public’s quiet endurance of Israeli strikes should not be mistaken for support for the Islamic Republic, and that reconciliation—if still possible—will require drastic change.
During the 12-day war with Israel, many inside Iran stood by their country under fire, moderates argue—but not by its ruling establishment.
“If anyone assumes that public support stems from satisfaction with the status quo, they are making a strategic mistake—one that could discourage the people and embolden the enemy,” prominent reformist Saeed Hajjarian told Ham-Mihan daily.
Hajjarian emphasized that the wartime unity was born of “patriotism, not nationalism,” and warned it may not be sustainable.
“Nationalism is the product of a state that genuinely cares about its nation,” Hajjarian said. “We have not yet reached that stage. The state must win the hearts of the people.”
Some exiled opposition groups had anticipated mass unrest during the conflict. It did not transpire, moderates say, due to fear, exhaustion, and alienation from both the state and its challengers—not support for the Islamic Republic.
Call for concessions
Ali Soufi, another senior reformist, said the burden now lies with the ruling establishment.“Just as the people and political factions stepped in unconditionally, the system must not turn a blind eye—it must carry out reforms.”
A key demand is the release of political prisoners. From Mir Hossein Mousavi—still under house arrest—to jailed figures like Mostafa Tajzadeh, their continued detention is seen as a barrier to unity.
In a recent statement, Mousavi renewed his call for a referendum to convene a constitutional assembly, arguing Iran’s current political structure no longer represents all of its people.
Political analyst Ahmad Zeidabadi warned that unity forged under external threat cannot survive if critics remain silenced. Days later, Tajzadeh’s sentence was extended by another five years, bringing his total to 17.
Public skepticism runs deep
It remains unclear how much traction these reformist demands have among ordinary Iranians. In recent protest waves, a popular slogan has been: “Reformist, hardliner, the game is over.”
For many, the chant reflects rejection of the entire political spectrum, including moderates.
Reformists point out that even long-detained Green Movement leaders joined the call to defend the country during the war. Their gesture, they argue, shows reconciliation is still possible—but only if the state takes bold steps.
While reformists frame prisoner releases as a national imperative, many Iranians appear more focused on daily hardship, corruption, and social restrictions.
Independent analysts echo this gap, warning of widespread “chronic distrust.”
“Unless the government addresses discrimination, injustice … corruption, lack of transparency, and social inequality … national cohesion will remain fragile and conditional,” political analyst Hadi Alami Fariman wrote in Arman Melli.
Even some within the establishment are issuing similar warnings.
“The mistaken belief should never arise among our officials that ‘whenever an attack occurs, the people will still be present on the scene,’” conservative politician Abolghasem Raoufian cautioned.
Iran is smarting from intelligence lapses in the 12-day war which allowed its arch-foe to assassinate top military figures and wreak havoc on bases and nuclear sites.
Hundreds of civilians were killed in the shock campaign last month.
The scale of the setback has sent bewildered officialdom searching for answers, and one Iranian lawmaker cited Shakdam's presence as a case study in infiltration.
Presenting herself as a Muslim convert and writer critical of Israel and the United States, Shakdam interviewed senior Iranian officials as a freelance journalist and attended various state-backed conferences on multiple visits up until 2017.
Iranian MP Mostafa Kavakebian said in a state TV interview last week that Shakdam was an Israeli spy who had slept with 120 senior officials, citing no evidence.
Speaking to Iran International, Shakdam was blunt about the remarks: “Not true, not possible, and completely absurd."
"They’re trying to destroy my character. I’ve got news for them — I do not give a shit. And you can quote me on this.”
Kavakebian's allegation drew fire online, where critics cited it as an example of poor logic, and even Iranian legal authorities who appeared eager to swiftly scotch discussion of the country's security failures.
Tehran’s prosecutor filed charges against Kavakebian for “disturbing public opinion,” calling the claims “unsupported" and summoned him to provide evidence.
State media outlet the West Asia News Agency (WANA), said the state had found no sign of espionage in Shakdam's case.
"Iran’s security and judicial bodies have explicitly stated that no documents or reports exist indicating immoral behavior, suspicious connections or illegal activities by Shakdam during her time in Iran."
Double life
Shakdam now works as a political analyst and spokesperson for an Israeli advocacy group We Believe In Israel.
She first drew the attention of Iranian authorities after publishing an opinion piece in the English-language Yemen Observer newspaper criticizing US intervention in Iraq. In 2009, she had moved to Yemen after marrying a Yemeni man.
The couple had two children before later divorcing. Her writings and public commentary eventually led to an invitation to appear on Iranian state TV as a Western voice critical of US foreign policy — a platform that opened the door to extraordinary access within Iran’s political elite.
That access, she says, revealed a system obsessed with propaganda and deeply rooted anti-Semitism.
“If you want to call me a master spy — yes, of my own agency, okay?” she told Iran International. “I went there on my own two feet. No one asked me to do anything.”
Her mission, she says, was self-assigned — but it came at a steep personal cost.
“Ten years of hard work, ten years of pretending and playing the game, and ten years of almost losing myself — because you reach a point where you don't know where you begin and the lie ends.”
During her time in Iran, she says she met top figures including Ebrahim Raisi before he became president and later died in a helicopter crash, Revolutionary Guards Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani and even Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
With dark humor, she recalled: “I had a little chat with Soleimani — obviously before he died because I don’t speak to ghosts. Raisi, obviously … Nader Talebzadeh many times. He died too. Not of my doing, okay. I had nothing to do with that.”
She joked that if she were a spy, she must be “00 Fluffy” — her own spin on 007, due to her owning many pet cats.
Warnings
The humiliation of Iran's military losses appears to be playing out in Iran's seemingly permanent power struggle between reformists and hardliners.
WANA characterized MP Kavakebian's TV outburst as an attempt to undermine hardliners who had welcomed Shakdam into their midst after foreign attacks last month failed to deliver the upheaval moderates supposedly seek in Iran.
"The lack of Iranian public support for Israel’s attack—even among those critical of the ruling system and governance quality in Iran—and the refusal to participate in street unrest, went against the expectations of pro-Western reformists inside the country."
"Perhaps the 'Mossad spy' story in Iran is not a bad place to start attacking a rival," WANA added. "Still, it must not be forgotten that the biggest beneficiaries of any internal division in Iran are those sitting in Tel Aviv."
Shakdam believes she was targeted because she is more visible and critical of Iran than ever following the 12-day war. Shakdam says the attack is rooted in the Islamic Republic’s deep-seated sexism and aimed at silencing outspoken women.
But after a decade of deception and backlash, she says she has no regrets.
“I just made a decision to do something with my life. And I did it. And I came out. And I’m proud of it.”