[Order David Horowitz’s new book, America Betrayed, HERE.]

As Robert Spencer stated earlier on Jihad Watch: “No one can run for the presidency of Iran without Khamenei’s approval.”  Iran’s constitutional body, the Guardian Council, has confirmed the victory of so-called “reformist” Masoud Pezeshkian, who will now succeed the late hardline President Ebrahim Raisi, but expect little change.

Elections in Iran are hardly democratic. The Supreme Leader, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Guardian Council disqualify any contender for the presidency who may be deemed a threat to the regime.

The outcome of a presidential election reveals Iran’s strategic direction. Pezeshkian serves to potentially pacify domestic and international threats via his diplomatic demeanor. The Iranian regime faces international disapproval of its brazen hardline approach as it moves toward developing a nuclear bomb; Western scrutiny over its ongoing war against the State of Israel by means of its proxies; and the ongoing threat of a potential uprising by fierce anti-regime dissidents, even as the Iranian government dismisses such a threat.

The Associated Press describes Pezeshkian as a “reformist politician within Iran’s Shiite theocracy — always pushing for change but never radically challenging the system overseen by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.” That’s because Pezeshkian is a pawn of the regime and has its approval.

Iran International — which the regime once demanded be designated a “terrorist” group due its truth-telling — post this on X about Pezeshkian’s win:

“Don’t be fooled by this bogus election of a puppet president,” French politician Francois Bechieau wrote on X following Masoud Pezeshkian’s win in Iran’s run-off presidential vote. Bechieau added that “the only real power” in Iran remains within the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC).

— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) July 7, 2024

Pezeshkian has secured “strong backing from his mentor,” former foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is also described as a “moderate.” Zarif is a staunch advocate of a nuclear deal with the West; he negotiated the first nuclear deal. Zarif didn’t hesitate to unleash against Israel within days of October 7, saying: “Israel’s fake image of resistance is now ruined. Israel’s barbaric actions is the reason for their continues defeat.” He also calls Muslims “the primary victims of the ‘cult of hatred’—empowered by colonial regimes and exported by their own clients”; and has made the outrageous claim that “Tehran has never called for the destruction of Israel.” So while Zarif and Pezeshkian may appear to be “moderates” or “reformists,” they only differ from their hardline counterparts in approach, not in substance.

Pezeshkian is the man of the hour — favored to do the bidding of the Supreme Leader as the one who has the greatest likelihood of winning the trust of Western globalists. He has the right tone, unlike his defeated hardline rival Saeed Jalili, and is firmly committed to exploiting any opportunity to advance toward the goal that Iran has long been eyeing: a new nuclear deal that would allow the regime to flourish. The soft-spoken cardiac surgeon has already called for “constructive negotiations” toward a revived 2015 nuclear deal, and China is doing the same.

Iran didn’t even try to hide its intentions before, with an open admission that the 2015 Iran deal was based on lies. Then came the announcement of the International Atomic Agency watchdog chief, Rafael Grossi, that Iran was enriching uranium at levels that were ordinarily seen only in countries making bombs.

No one could possibly trust the Iranian regime, except for globalist leaders such as Joe Biden et al, their media lapdogs, and America’s enemies, gleefully awaiting America’s downfall. Many backroom deals under the Obama administration saw tens of billions flow into Iran’s coffers. Now with Joe Biden at the helm, and Iran’s new president, prepare for more deals to benefit the Islamic Republic, under the charade of achieving regional and ultimately world peace.

Biden is delusional and declining; he apparently wants to go down in history as the American president  who brokered peace in the region, no matter at what cost. Yet the only negotiations the Islamic Republic will engage in are those which benefit its own longterm supremacist interests.

Pezeshkian’s win represents a new level of threat to the West, as Iran holds out a misleading hope to the West’s gullible leaders, offering a smoothly paved route to appeasement and aid of the Iranian regime. No one is concerned that the doomsday vision of Shia Iran is the beliefthat “the Hidden Imam will appear in the midst of a violent apocalyptic scenario played out on a battleground stained with infidels’ blood.”

Israel must prepare for a long tough road ahead as it is increasingly framed as a stumbling block to peace, while globalists and Islamic supremacists continue to gaslight the willfully blind elements of what’s remaining of Western society.