During the introduction of Zeinolabedin Khorram as the governor of the Iranian province of East Azerbaijan, another officer of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) slapped him in the face, causing a scandal for the Iranian regime.
#BREAKING#EastAzarbaijan—one of audience goes to the stage and slaps #IRGC commander Zeinolabedin Khorram Razavi, the new governor Provincial Governor, during his inauguration ceremony.
The interior minister was among the companies, showing all participants were hand-picked. pic.twitter.com/h5yYc4092N
— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) October 23, 2021
Images of this event spread very fast over the internet. Regardless of why an IRGC member attacked another member and that at the highest ranks of this organization, the news of an official “being slapped” by another was welcomed by the Iranian people. So much so that the people even created a hashtag for it.
The reaction of the people, who did not care about the motivation of the attacker, while expressing their happiness about this event, is because of their hatred for this regime – people who are counting every second to get rid of this corrupt regime.
That is the reason why such news is spreading very fast between the people. But the regime’s problem is that such events between the regime’s elements and officials especially in the IRGC and other repressive organizations encourage the people. As an example, Ahamad Zaid Abadi from the regime’s so-called reformist faction warned:
“The physical encounter during the introduction of the governor of East Azerbaijan is very unfortunate. These encounters are a sign of dense anger and the loss of cortical resilience of Iranians in the absence of a defined solution to civil interaction between the components of society and the government.”
He revealed his real concern when he said: “Because if it becomes a tradition, it will be a bad tradition with terrible consequences.” (State-run daily Tabnak, October 23, 2021)
Gholamreza Tajgardoun, a regime’s MP, expressed his fear and said: “We will take back all the slaps we have given. It’s just a matter of time. We should have passion.”
The state-run daily Aftab showed the regime’s fears of the people’s reaction and wrote:
“People’s reactions to this incident are very specific and reflective. Some users have interpreted this slap as a slap of the people into the face of the imprudent and non-working authorities. This incident is a sign of public anger that the community has towards some officials. If appropriate measures are not taken, there is a fear that this anger will turn into a blind rage and repeat the adverse events of 2017 and 2019.”
Meanwhile, the state-run daily Jomhouri Eslami showed the critical situation among the regime’s officials and wrote:
“The meaning of the new phase is that with what happened in Tabriz, it became clear that the conflicts have now reached one of the most important security and defense sectors of the country.
“In this incident, both the attacker and victim were from the IRGC! This is exactly what should never have happened. It was clear that such a false culture would reach such dangerous stages. There is no need to delay, and this chronic disease must be treated urgently. Of course, not with force, but with a change of outlook.”
This daily reflected its concern about the regime’s decision on the appointment of IRGC officials as the country’s governors and added:
“The first slap in the face of the IRGC came when they brought the IRGC into the political arena and accepted executive responsibilities, making them responsible for water, bread, electricity, and gas instead of national security. The Tabriz slap was the second slap on the IRGC. And this was the natural consequence of the first slap. Unfortunately, the first slap was not heard.”
The Arman daily reiterated the same concern and wrote:
“Definitely, the place of the army members is their main task the defense of the country and its borders. Governors should be selected from the expert class and experienced management. Military work is not very compatible with executive work, and sometimes it burns opportunities.”
Finally, it should be noted that Zeinolabedin Khorram was one of the IRGC officers who were captured in Syria on August 4, 2021, by the Free Syrian Army (FSA).
A telegram channel belonging to the regime’s former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wrote: “The governor who was slapped on Saturday was the same commander who the system paid ISIS $57 million to secure his release.”
