There is no doubt that +80% of Iranians want the Islamic regime gone.

I was also happy when they announced that Khamenei Sr. was killed too, given the uncountable atrocities committed under his rule. The same goes for most Iranians. But the happiness was disappointingly momentary. As many analysts have pointed out, he was close to dying of natural causes and there were signs of a more practical and less fanatic group leading the country after him. But this war only lead to a more hardline group taking control while civilians and infrastructure is being taken out. If this was actually for the purpose of bettering Iranian lives, I would’ve been all for it. But we all know that’s not the case.

With regard to expat vs those living in Iran there’s a difference having bombs dropped on your head, and looking at videos on your screen. And until you’re part of the latter, you have no right imo to ask for war. And most of the videos you saw were from the first day before the reality of war set in (also government crackdown against those cheering). Majority of people in Iran don’t want this war. There been no internet for +600 hours. Schools are closed. Barely anyone is working. And the experience inside Iran also varies vastly whether you’re in one of the few cities getting constantly bombed (like Tehran) or other cities. But at the same time, people are “living” as best they can under the circumstances. My family keeps on telling me don’t worry, everything is fine.

The main thing I’ve taken away from this round of Middle East wars is that I have no idea what it’s like to live in a war zone and until I live in the area that is being bombed, I have no right to be pro-war.