Iran's leader talks tough, but the knives are out for him
Despite defiance and fiery rhetoric during a rare Friday sermon, Iran's supreme leader is facing multiplying dangers: Protesters again in the streets, Europe's threat of new economic sanctions and President Donald Trump's drone strike on a top general have shaken a regime that for decades has stayed in power by repressing its people and sowing intrigue across the Middle East.
The sermon was carefully choreographed - worshipers burned and stomped on American flags - as Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Iran's ballistic missile barrage last week on a U.S. base in Iraq let his government "slap the face" of Washington. He railed against protesters as betrayers and "stooges of the United States." He sought to inspire his supporters with images and hyperbole
You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.
Start your free 30 days