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Source: http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/iran_e147.htm
The Rise and Fall of the Iranian Revolutionary Model
(Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center) Raz Zimmt - The internal developments in Iran and the upheavals in the Arab world pose significant challenges for the Iranian regime. The erosion in the status of the clerics, the growing resistance to the concept of rule by the Supreme Leader, and the increasing difficulty to present the Islamic revolution as a successful model to be imitated by Muslim societies cast doubts on the future of the regime. In the short term, the Iranian leadership may be able to eliminate any threat to the stability of the regime and take advantage of new opportunities to advance its influence in the Arab world. However, the increasing power of alternative ideological views at home, coupled with the emergence of competing Islamic government models in the Arab world, may make it even more difficult for Iran to realize its long-term objectives. The author is a researcher at the Center for Iranian Studies at Tel Aviv University.