Sahand Moarefy

[Sahand Moarefy @SMoarefy]

Delighted to announce the publication of my new book, The New Power Brokers: The Rise of Asset Manager Capitalism and the New Economic Order, available for order on Amazon today. https://t.co/tOXWye4ciQ

[Miad Maleki @miadmaleki]

Is it too hard to simply call on the Islamic Republic to behave as a normal state, or does honest analysis now require laundering regime responsibility through the vocabulary of "blockade" and "starvation"? This framing is either intellectually lazy or purposefully crafted to mislead, and it abandons the first duty of serious analysis: locating causation where the evidence puts it.

Every government's baseline responsibility is to pursue foreign and economic policies that serve its people's prosperity. Tehran has done the opposite for three decades and the record predates U.S. secondary sanctions by a wide margin.

The Majles Research Center itself documented in 1999 that 63.5% of privatizations between 1989 and 1998 went to foundations and parastatals, not a real private sector, not to the ordinary Iranians. Khamenei's Article 44 decree transferring the commanding heights to IRGC-linked and bonyad entities was issued in May 2005, five years before CISADA was passed in the U.S. Congress. IRGC economic control was estimated at ~60% by 2009.

That is what I'd call khosulati capture, not U.S. sanctions.

U.S. messaging has often been poor and, yes, that critique is fair. But sanctions are imposed in response to national security threats: nuclear escalation, ballistic missile proliferation, terrorism financing, hostage-taking. What Washington and the international community ask of Tehran; stop enriching to weapons-grade, stop arming proxies, stop killing dissidents abroad; are reasonable expectations of any responsible state.

Iranians are impoverished by their own regime's choices. Pretending otherwise isn't analysis but merely advocacy presented as analysis.

[Karim Sadjadpour @ksadjadpour]

1 The defining deliberations of this war aren't between the US and Iran, but Trump and himself. He’s vacillated between walking away and promising to bomb Iran to the Stone Age. Iran has been consistent: Its ideology is resistance, its strategy is chaos, its endgame is survival.

[Decado @ItsDecado]

To those speaking of iran's infrastructure being destroyed as a consequence of this war:

Let’s talk about your staggering hypocrisy.

When they set the Rasht market ablaze with our people trapped inside, your heart didn't bleed. You felt absolutely nothing for the innocent lives burning to ash. But now that a bridge in Karaj gets blown to pieces, suddenly you want to weep over "Iranian infrastructure"?

Let me tell you exactly what kind of bridge this was.

It was never meant for us. Not a single civilian has ever set foot on it. It wasn't even open to the public. It was a phantom structure, built for one reason and one reason only: to connect two IRGC military bases and serve as a direct, covert artery to an underground missile city. It was carved right behind the Azimiyeh mountains, stretching west toward Radar Mountain. God only knows what dark, malignant operations these terrorists are hiding in the tunnels beneath that rock.

In short: it was a pure military asset for an occupying terror syndicate.

So yes, when I saw the sky light up with that explosion, I cheered. I watched their concrete shatter, and I smiled. Because it meant only one thing: another massive, crippling blow to the terror machine of the Islamic Republic that holds my country hostage.

You can mourn the rubble of their military bases all you want. When this occupation is finally eradicated, we will build our own bridges.

[Ashkan Karbasfrooshan @ashkan]

Criticize regime opponents (especially monarchists) all you want. The irony is that many of them could easily turn their backs on Iran, live comfortably in the West, and ignore the pain and pleas of Iranians suffering inside the country.
To me, the real hypocrisy lies with those Iranians in the West who enjoy liberty, freedom, secularism, capitalism, and the protections of liberal society, yet dismiss, minimize, or silence the suffering of Iranians back home.
For 47 years, people inside Iran have lived under repression, censorship, and brutality, at times even being cut off from the internet for weeks on end. Yet some in the diaspora, who would never choose to live permanently under that system themselves, continue to enable and whitewash the regime through their hostility toward the West, their contempt for America, and their resentment of Jewish success.
And then they say, “You’ll never set foot in Iran again.” That is supposed to settle the matter? This was never about me. It is about amplifying the voices of those inside Iran, not protecting my own personal interests. Do they really think I belong in the Islamic Republic’s Iran? Do they think that is where I want to live? The difference is simple: I refuse to be a hypocrite.
Iranians in the West who downplay the aspirations of those inside Iran, while enjoying the benefits of free, secular, liberal societies themselves, are among the worst offenders. But of course, we are told the real villains are the monarchists and the traitors are those who stand by the Iranian people and not this illegitimate regime.

[ايران اينترنشنال @IranIntl]

رفتار «غیرایرانی» چیست؟

کامبیز حسینی در برنامهٔ امشب از رفتاری حرف می‌زند که به نظر او «غیرایرانی» است!

«برنامه» دوشنبه تا پنجشنبه، ساعت ۱۱ شب پخش می‌شود.

«یک ایران صدای شما را می‌شنود»
دوشنبه تا پنجشنبه ۱۱ شب تهران
از تلویزیون ایران اینترنشنال

تماشای نسخه کامل این قسمت از «برنامه» در یوتیوب:
https://t.co/MkXovaiwLZ

[Reza Pahlavi @PahlaviReza]

My dear compatriots,

Decisive moments lie before us.

The assistance that the President of the United States had promised to the brave people of Iran has now arrived. This is a humanitarian intervention, and its target is the Islamic Republic, its apparatus of repression, and its machinery of killing—not the country and great nation of Iran.

However, despite the arrival of this assistance, the final victory will still be achieved by us. It is we, the people of Iran, who will finish this task in this final battle. The time to return to the streets is approaching.

Now that the Islamic Republic is collapsing, my message to the country’s military, law enforcement, and security forces is clear:

You have sworn an oath to protect Iran and the Iranian nation, not the Islamic Republic and its leaders. Your duty is to defend the people, not to defend a regime that has taken our homeland hostage through repression and crime. Join the nation and help ensure a stable and secure transition. Otherwise, you will sink with Khamenei’s ship and his crumbling regime.

And my message to the President of the United States, President Trump, is this:

The honorable people of Iran, despite the brutal repression and killings carried out by this regime, stood bravely for nearly two months. I now ask you to exercise the utmost possible caution to preserve the lives of civilians and my compatriots. The people of Iran are your natural allies and the allies of the free world, and they will not forget your assistance during the most difficult period of Iran’s contemporary history.

And to you, my dear compatriots in Iran:

In these sensitive hours and days, more than ever we must remain focused on our ultimate goal: reclaiming Iran.

I ask you, for now, to remain in your homes and remain calm and safe. Stay alert and ready to return to the streets for the final action at the appropriate time, which I will communicate to you.

Follow my messages through social media and satellite media. If disruptions occur in the internet and satellite broadcasts, I will remain in contact with you via radio.

We are very close to final victory. I hope to be with you as soon as possible so that together we may reclaim Iran and rebuild it.

Long live Iran.
Reza Pahlavi

[Walter Russell Mead @wrmead]

The paradox of power in the Middle East: Israel's decisive weakening of Iran increased security across the region, but leaves Jerusalem isolated. https://t.co/REzGoZM23Y

[Iran International English @IranIntl_En]

The documentary film "Iran’s 2026 Massacre: Inside the Kahrizak Morgue" presents unfiltered footage from inside Tehran's Kahrizak morgue, showing the bodies of those killed during the brutal crackdown on Iranian protesters in Jan 2026.

📺Watch on YouTube:
https://t.co/fsCg7NiuZF

[Edward N Luttwak @ELuttwak]

Estimates of the number of Iranians killed by the regime to repress the protests hovered around 3000 but now that number is 30,000. Why ? Because it was Tehran numbers at first. But Mashad 2nd largest city, the Kurdish Ilan province, and many other places also exploded

[Sahand Moarefy @SMoarefy]

@websterkaroon Don’t agree with everything you say but very much well said on this one!

[Sahand Moarefy @SMoarefy]

I don’t think it’s all that constructive or edifying to characterize a political movement by reference to the words or actions of the worst elements of that movement. It’s something you can do with any cause or ideology. And not sure what is the benefit of causing leaders of said movement to constantly self-flagellate about what some random anon (or anons) to do other than to distract from the bigger crisis, i.e., the 20K and more innocents that have been murdered, the digital blackout, etc. If you can point me or others to what the leaders of this movement are specifically and consistently saying that is problematic it would be very clarifying. I hadn’t heard this yet.

[پری‌سا @longlosthills]

Ashkan Alipour, a passionate young barista, bartender, and flair artist, as a teenager deeply enamored with his work, his life revolved around constant practice and learning, honing skills that brought joy and creativity to those around him. He had recently obtained a professional certificate, marking a milestone in his promising future ahead, one cruelly stolen by the regime. On January 8, in Fardis, Karaj, he was fatally shot in the neck by forces of the Islamic Republic regime during protests.

P.S. More information will be posted if found later.
#DigitalBlackoutIran
#IranRevolution2026
#IranMassacre

[Dr. Eli David @DrEliDavid]

"Hold the door" is the real life in Iran, as regime forces go door-to-door to arrest and eliminate anyone suspected of protesting or assisting protesters

[Shervin @shervin]

People have asked how they can directly support getting more Starlinks into Iran for freedom activists. Here is the most trusted path I know.

My partner in our Freedom Project (2022) was Mehdi Yahyanejad @mehdiy_fa, founder of Balatarin, often called the Reddit of Iran. Mehdi has been blacklisted in Iran for years because of his work, and he has dedicated his life to building and protecting networks of courageous activists inside the country.

He is the real deal.

Every dollar raised through this campaign goes toward putting Starlink terminals and secure connectivity directly into the hands of brave Iranians risking everything for freedom, bypassing censorship, shutdowns, and regime control.

This is not symbolic support.
This is infrastructure for liberation.

👉 Please support here:
https://t.co/fr0mpTudKx

If you’ve been asking what actually helps, this is it.

[Sahand Moarefy @SMoarefy]

Fully agreed. Stakes are too high for disagreements within the diaspora to distract energy and attention from fighting the regime that is solely and exclusively responsible for the crimes of the past week.

[Elie Omidvari الی امیدواری @EliOmidvari]

چی می‌شد اگر همونطور که احمد باطبی و مسیح علینژاد، با گرایشهای متفاوت سیاسی در شورای امنیت کنار هم نشستند و ��ز خون مردم ایران با روایت حقیقت پاسداری کردند، همه‌ی جریانها و گروه‌های فکری هم کنار هم می‌نشستند؛
برای ایران، برای مردم شجاعش، و برای جنگ با جمهوری اسلامی!
#IranMassacre

[Nazanin Boniadi @NazaninBoniadi]

ایران از نظر سیاسی دچار پیچیدگی، شکاف و آسیب است. برای ترمیم، و اینکه دموکراسی به ثمر بنشیند، به آشتی ملی نیاز داریم. این مسیر از گام‌هایی ساده آغاز می‌شود از جمله توافق بر روی مواضعی مشترک یا متحد شدن برای امضای بیانیه‌هایی حداقلی که به آن‌ها باور داریم، حتی در کنار کسانی که همیشه با آن‌ها هم‌نظر نیستیم.

[Sahand Moarefy @SMoarefy]

He actually has tremendous name recognition and appeal domestically in Iran, has been doing a lot of activist work over the decades w/ networks within the country (with no profit to himself and a lot of personal tragedy and hardship), and doesn’t market himself as a monarch but at most a ceremonial figure who will help facilitate the transition to democracy. Entirely reasonable and fair to be skeptical, and who knows how this all ultimately play out, but the specific facts and circumstances matter / you can’t just equate it to Iraq& Chalabi (who was a convicted huckster from day 1)

[Commonplace @commonplc]

The old era of progressive-infused ESG is over, as even its once-stalwart proponents have come to realize.

But what will investment stewardship look like in Trump's second term? @SMoarefy breaks down how we got here, and what could come next. https://t.co/wlfUTpgrka

[Sahand Moarefy @SMoarefy]

Longer conversation but all I’ll say is I’d be wary of conflating not having any core beliefs or sense of internal moral compass with the type of pragmatic centrism that we’ve to associate with neoliberalism in the West - same type of thinking that made many Washington Consensus types in the late 90s think of Putin as a Russian version of Clinton/Blair