'The US landed in this war without planning. The US felt that if they kill Ayatollah Khamenei the people of Iran will come out on the roads and do a regime change.'
'On the contrary, the US bombings on Iran has united the entire nation.'
Key Points
- Iran's deep-rooted Persian nationalism, stemming from ancient empires, fuels its resistance against external threats, even among government critics.
- Iran views attacks on US bases in Gulf countries as retaliation for US aggression, not as aggression against Gulf nations themselves.
- Iran's government's anti-US and anti-Israel stance is fundamental to its rule, making reconciliation with Israel impossible.
- Despite US sanctions and internal protests, Iranian nationalism unites the country against foreign intervention, bolstering the regime's position.
- The presence of US military bases in the Gulf region is a key factor driving Iran's strategic calculations and actions in the conflict.
The war between the United States-Israel and Iran enters its second week on Saturday, March 14, 2026.
Defying predictions that the Islamic Republic would quickly collapse under military pressure, Iran has continued to fight back with missile and drone strikes on US military installations and strategic targets across the Gulf, demonstrating an ability to absorb heavy blows while still retaliating.
One of the biggest reasons Iran has not buckled under pressure is the deep-rooted sense of Persian nationalism that runs through Iranian society.
Iranian national identity is built on a historical memory stretching back thousands of years to ancient empires such as the Achaemenid and Sassanian dynasties, long before the arrival of Islam.
This strong civilisational consciousness has repeatedly allowed Iranians to maintain a distinct identity even after foreign conquests, including the Arab conquest of the 7th century, when Persians adopted Islam but preserved their language and cultural traditions.
This nationalism continues to shape Iran's response to external threats. Even Iranians who strongly oppose their government often rally behind the country when it faces foreign military attacks.
In this interview with Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff, Kuwait-based senior journalist Ziya Rizvi explains how Iranian nationalism, regional geopolitics and the presence of US bases across the Gulf have shaped Tehran's strategy in the current conflict.
'Iran just wants to demolish the presence of western forces in the Gulf'
Why is Iran attacking Gulf countries, leading to an energy crisis across the world?
Let me clarify, first of all, that Iran is not attacking the Gulf countries. but it is the other way round. You got to understand this perspective in terms of war.
All the US bases from which they are launching air attacks on Iran are in the Gulf countries. So the fight is between Iran and the US supported by Israel. Therefore, it is obvious Iran will attack US bases that are located in Gulf countries.
Iran has no problem with the Gulf countries, but with the US bases located in Gulf countries.
Civilians too are being targeted by Iran, apart from oil refineries in the Gulf countries.
No, they are not being targeted. They are only attacking every place that the US has an interest in the Gulf. Israel is the only exception where Iran has attacked civilians, and that too in retaliation.
Gulf countries on their own are very weak militarily. They are totally dependent on America, especially after the Iraq-Kuwait war (1991). How can Iran expect these countries to take action against the US?
These Gulf countries can always tell the US not to use their home soil to attack Iran. All the US attacks taking place on Iran originate from Gulf countries and therefore Iran is telling these countries to stop the attacks, which they are not doing.
What was the relationship between Iran and the Gulf countries like before the war?
They had good relations. They had no issues and they were civil.
Iran just wants to demolish the presence of western forces in the Gulf region. The US abandoned Gulf countries in the attacks by Iran. They are not providing any shield to Gulf countries to prevent attacks from Iran, and they are only securing Israel from Iran’s attacks.
'Iran cannot ever bond with Israel'
What about the Abraham Accords signed by Israel with the Gulf countries in 2020? Was Iran upset about it?
No, Saudi Arabia moved out of Abraham Accords (they never joined the accords) after dilly-dallying.
Iran had nothing to do with the Abraham Accords and they knew the priority of the Abraham Accords for the USA was Israel and not the Arab countries.
Arab countries too knew that the US' first choice is always Israel.
Iran is the only country in the Middle East standing up to Israel. The rest have either given up the fight or shaken hands with Israel. Why is Iran so different?
The day Iran shakes hand with Israel their revolution will be over. They cannot ever bond with Israel.
'Iran is the only Gulf nation that is hyper-nationalist'
But even after US sanctions for close to 40 years Iran has stood strongly by its principles of anti-Americanism and anti-Israel policies. Where do the Iranians get their strength from? Is it because the government follows the Shia beliefs of martyrdom and sacrifice?
Iran is the only nation in the Gulf region which is hyper-nationalist. It is very difficult for an outsider to understand this about Iranians.
Even if they are against the government of Iran they will side with the Iranian regime at this point of time when the US has attacked them. You will not see nationalism running in the blood of each citizen in any other country as it does in Iran.
The Shia martyrdom concept, does it drive the Iranians to fight?
Yes, it does, because they fought an eight-year war with Iraq (from 1980 to 1988).
Since you spoke of Iran nationalism, can we go back in history to how Iranians, then called Persians, were able to revive their language after being defeated by the Arabs in the battle of Nahavand in 642 AD that resulted in the end of the Sassanid empire?
They accepted Islam and gave up on Zoroastrianism, but never gave up Persian for Arabic as the official language of Iran.
Persians never integrated with the Arabs even when they were defeated by them and later became their rulers. Arabs called non-Arabs as 'Mawali' even though they converted to Islam. Mawali means non-Arab. Persians, they called them 'Ajams' (for their inability to speak Arabic properly).
Persians always maintained their independent identity under Arab rule. They always believed they were different.
'Trump was misled by Reza Pahlavi'
What about the anti-hijab protestors? Are they also backing the Iranian government in times of war?
Anti-hijab protestors are a miniscule population of Iran.
Exiled Iranian prince Reza Pahalvi gave a very different picture to US President Donald Trump about his support in Tehran.
Trump was made to believe that these anti-hijab protestors will overthrow the Islamic regime of Iran. They did come on the roads to protest against the Iranian regime, but they did not come on the streets to support Iran's monarchy.
The US landed in this war without planning. The US felt that if they kill Ayatollah Khamenei the people of Iran will come out on the roads and do a regime change. On the contrary, the US bombings on Iran has united the entire nation.
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