Summary
Overview
This episode of The Daily examines the deep divisions within Iran's government over whether to continue fighting or pursue peace with the United States. Following the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, reporter Abdi Latif Tahir was granted rare access to attend the funeral ceremonies in Tehran, where he witnessed intense calls for revenge despite a tentative peace deal. The episode reveals a profound split between hardline religious factions demanding continued conflict and pragmatic leaders seeking diplomatic solutions, all while the new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei remains largely absent and unable to unify the fractured leadership.
Inside Iran: A Choreographed Funeral with Unscripted Anger
New York Times reporter Abdi Latif Tahir becomes the first Times journalist to enter Iran in months, attending the multi-day funeral service for the slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Despite heavy government monitoring and choreography designed to showcase public mourning, Tahir witnesses something unexpected: crowds turning their grief into rage, demanding revenge rather than peace. The funeral becomes a stage where Iran's internal divisions play out publicly, with mourners rejecting the very peace deal their government had just signed.
- Iran allowed NYT reporter into country with government-appointed translators and guides who monitored all activities and reported daily
- Millions came to Tehran's Zadi Square to view Khamenei's body despite extreme heat, creating a sea of mourners
- Woman at funeral carrying revenge flag opposed negotiations, saying 'Trump cannot scare us with death'
- The word 'revenge' (intaqam) appeared everywhere on banners, posters, flags, and shirts in English, Arabic, and Farsi
- Iranian President and Foreign Minister were confronted by angry crowds, with President nearly knocked down and Foreign Minister having stones thrown at him
" Trump cannot scare us with death. In other words, we're willing to die in order to seek this revenge. "
" If there's one word that really defined these public mourning ceremonies, it's the word revenge, which is intaqam. "
Ships Attacked: The Peace Deal Crumbles
Just as the Ayatollah's funeral concluded, Iran launched a surprise attack on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz, violating the memorandum of understanding with the United States. The attack's origins remain murky, with Iranian mediators claiming it was conducted by rogue hardline elements within the Revolutionary Guards rather than official government orders. This incident exemplifies the extraordinary prospect that hardliners might be willing to restart war independently to derail peace negotiations, revealing deep dysfunction within Iran's power structure.
- Iran struck three ships in Strait of Hormuz in violation of the memorandum of understanding with the U.S.
- Iranian mediators told the U.S. that rogue hardline Revolutionary Guards elements, not the government, conducted the attack
- The attack came as a surprise to Iran's President and Foreign Minister, suggesting lack of unified command
- This was one of the only attacks Iran didn't officially claim responsibility for
" If the hardliners would, on their own, without central command, decide to take such a consequential step with massive consequences for Iran, for the 90 million people there, for the region, what does that say about sort of the disarray within the Iranian rank and file? "
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