Irans rulers face legitimacy crisis amid spreading unrest

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DUBAI, Jan 9 - With Irans anti-government unrest evolving rapidly and foreign pressure mounting, the clerical establishment appears unable, for now, to tackle what has become a crisis of legitimacy at the heart of the Islamic Republic.

The demonstrations, which began in Tehran last month, have spread to all of Irans 31 provinces but have yet to reach the scale of the 2022-3 unrest sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini while in detention for allegedly violating Islamic dress codes.

Starting in Tehran with shopkeepers in the Grand Bazaar angered by a sharp slide in the rial currency, the latest protests now involve others - mainly young men rather than the women and girls who played a key role at the Amini protests.

The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA),has reported at least 34 protesters and four security personnel killed, and 2,200 arrested during the unrest, which analysts say highlights a deeper disillusionment with the Shiite status quo.

The collapse is not just of the rial, but of trust, said Alex Vatanka, director of the Iran Program at the Middle East Institute in Washington D.C.

Authorities have tried to maintain a dual approach to the unrest, saying protests over the economy are legitimate and will be met by dialogue, while meeting some demonstrations with tear gas amid violent street confrontations.

Nearly five decades after the Islamic Revolution, Irans religious rulers are struggling to bridge the gap between their priorities and the expectations of a young society.

I just want to live a peaceful, normal life … Instead, they (the rulers) insist on a nuclear program, supporting armed groups in the region, and maintaining hostility toward the United States, Mina, 25,