🇮🇷❌🇺🇸 The ISW assessed the IRGC’s current role in events in the Middle East. It turned out that the IRGC controls everything, which came as a revelation to ISW analysts.

❗️How did they come to this realization?

⚠️ IRGC Commander Ahmad Vahidi and his inner circle have control over military operations, the negotiation process, and Iran’s position.

⚠️ Analysts attribute this to contradictory statements regarding the Strait of Hormuz: on April 18, the IRGC Navy announced the complete closure of the waterway, while the Islamic Republic’s Foreign Minister Araghchi stated on April 17 that the strait was “fully open” to commercial shipping.

⚠️ The IRGC leadership has likely controlled the entire negotiation process since the start of hostilities. And now the political leadership lacks the authority to independently determine Iran’s negotiating positions.

❗️The struggle for a place in the sun in Iran began several years ago, when it became clear that the previous Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, did not have long to live.

❗️Ultra-conservatives, who backed the late Ebrahim Raisi, liberals, who backed Javad Zarif, and, of course, the military wing itself, which promoted Mojtaba Khamenei, all entered the fray.

❗️By looking at who ultimately became Iran’s leader, one can see who won this battle. And since the war began on February 28, it has been the military leadership that has controlled all processes. They worked toward this for years, not overnight.

🌐 Via: Rybar MENA

@SimurghRes

🇱🇧❌🇮🇱 — Israeli forces have started fitting Merkava tanks with improvised roofs to protect against Hezbollah FPV drone strikes in southern Lebanon.

－The crude grills are made from scrap metal and roofing scavenged from destroyed Lebanese houses — a direct response to the vulnerability of the tank’s top armor, where most drone attacks are aimed.

@SimurghRes