The key players in the 1979 Iranian Revolution were not the students, nor the bazaaris, but the oil workers. When they went out on strike in 1978 against the Shah’s regime and in support of the little-known and less-understood Ayatollah Khomeini, Iran’s production, and sales, of oil and refined petroleum products plummeted. This led to great economic distress, which only added to the fury of ordinary Iranians, who blamed not the workers on strike, but the regime itself, against which those workers were striking.
Now the news comes that the oil workers of Iran have begun to strike in solidarity with the protesters all over Iran, who are now in the second month of their demonstrations. They are striking not only to decrease the production of petrochemicals and other refined products unless the regime stops its crackdown; that would be bad enough. The ominous threat that the contract workers have now made is to “destroy everything we have built.” That is, the are prepared to destroy the petroleum industry’s essential infrastructure. A report on the Iranian oil workers out on strike, and what they threaten to do if their demands are not met by the regime, can be found here: “Oil workers join Iran protests: ‘We’ll destroy everything we built,'” by Tzvi Joffre, Jerusalem Post, October 11, 2022:
Contract workers at petrochemical plants and oil refineries across Iran went on strike on Monday and Tuesday, as protests following the killing of Mahsa Amini continued across the country for a fourth week.
Workers at the South Pars Phase 14 Conventional Gas Field stated in a video shared on social media that they were giving Iranian forces attacking protesters three days to lay down their weapons, warning that otherwise “we will destroy everything we have built.” Another video reportedly from the South Pars platform showed a worker announcing his cooperation with striking oil workers and repeating the warning that workers would “destroy everything” they built if the suppression of protesters did not cease.
The Organizing Council for Protests of Oil Contract Workers had warned late last month that petrochemical workers would strike if the suppression of protesters continued.
What does this threat mean? It means that the oil workers believe that they can now call the shots; it is they who have given Iranian forces across the country an ultimatum: stop killing protesters, lay down your weapons, or we will destroy all that we built, by which they mean the entire infrastructure of the oil-and-gas industry on which Iran’s economy is based. They will destroy the oil derricks, the natural gas rigs in the Gulf, and the gigantic petrochemical plants themselves. They will Samson-like pull down the columns holding up the edifice of the Islamic Republic. They don’t fear for their lives; they know that they cannot easily be replaced, and the regime needs to keep them alive to pump that oil and gas, and to run the refineries.
What can the police and army do? Can they risk the destruction, by its own workers, of Iran’s oil-and-gas industry’s infrastructure? How many years would it take for them to rebuild a gigantic petrochemical complex of the size as the one Asaluyeh, or a refinery of the size of that at Abadan, were it to be blown up? Can they take a chance that the workers are bluffing? Or that they are not able to wreak such destruction?
Girls and women ripping off and burning their hijabs may offend the morality police and the mullahs, but they cause no damage to the nation’s essential industry. The students at the universities may chant “Death to the Islamic Republic!” and “Death to the Dictator” instead of going to class, but they can always make up the classes, and no lasting tangible damage has been done, though the regime has been greatly embarrassed. When President Ebrahim Raisi visited Alzahra University on October 6, the women students shouted “Mullahs get lost” and “Raisi get lost” as he tried to speak. He had been publicly shamed, but no economic damage was done, no infrastructure was blown to smithereens..
Even the Supreme Leader is now being attacked everywhere: in the chants of protesters, and in the ripping down from walls, or the vandalizing, of those omnipresent posters of Ayatollah Khamenei. Hackers interrupted a state TV news broadcast with an image of the Supreme Leader appearing in the crosshairs of a gun-sight, while flames flickered around his face, in footage widely shared online on Sunday. “The blood of our youths is on your hands,” read an on-screen message that flashed up briefly during the TV broadcast Saturday evening, before the camera turned away.
But all that is as nothing compared to what the refinery workers have threatened to do if the assaults on protesters do not stop. Asaluyeh, where the oil-and-gas workers first struck, is the site for the land-based facilities of the huge PSEEZ (Pars Special Energy Economic Zone) project. The scale is immense. There are 28 refineries and 25 petrochemical complexes. But it could all come tumbling down with the right amount of dynamite and determination by the oil and gas workers, incensed at how the regime is shooting down protesters.
And now the news has just arrived that the workers have also gone on strike, in sympathy with the protesters elsewhere, at another oil facility, the gigantic refinery at Abadan. The government denies that there is anything going on at Abadan, but unfortunately for its propagandists, videos shared on Twitter have shown dozens of petrochemical workers, some in uniforms, gathering outside buildings or staging demonstrations at the refinery, a site which is immediately recognizable to Iranians. The strike appeared to be taking place at what is called “phase two” of the refinery, which has major symbolic significance in Iran. Strikes at the facility played a major role in the 1979 revolution, helping to overthrow the Shah of Iran. That symbolism is not lost either on the faltering regime, or on those who are now determined to topple it.
Jim J Fox says
Wow! It’s to be hoped that this is true and that the current regime will be terminated. But what will replace it?
Golem2 says
Iran could turn to Democracy when the Mullahs are gone.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
So that oil will permanently be off the market, no matter what happens to the regime?
I AM THE INFIDEL YOUR IMAM WARNED YOU ABOUT says
The Oil/Petroleum workers can bring about a revolution and they must. I am sure some of the protesting students are their children and close relatives. They must support the protests. Other sector workers should also join in. If everyone joins in they can bring this evil mullah regime down and establish freedom and independence and democracy.
Keith O says
Well, this will be “interesting”, nothing gets the attention of dictators faster than someone threatening their personal piggybanks.
Walter Sieruk says
A former Muslim who revealed an important reality when he wrote “The Islamic republic of Iran exists and operates as what every fundamentalist dreams of, an Islamic state ruled by sharia …” He further exposes that “What followed its establishment was the inevitable consequence and inexorable logic of its Islamic premise; state terrorism, a merciless tyranny.” [1]
Those two words that author used “merciless tyranny” to describe that vicious cruel brutal oppressive Islamic and murderous Islamic tyrannical regime is both appropriate and fitting. Just look at those brutal horrendous malicious murders by the state Islamic police and of so many Iranians who are justly and rightly protesting the severe human rights abuses cruelty and oppression of that tyrannical Islamic regime.
Indeed, the tyrants of Khamenei and Raisi are very guilty and have the blood of many innocent people on their wicked hands.
[1] THE ISLAM IN ISLAMIC TERRORISM by Ibn Warraq page 347.
James Lincoln says
Interestingly, in the United States, it is the fake president himself who has destroyed the domestic oil industry.
Fitna says
Indeed James, then he goes running to Muslim countries (our enemies) with hat in hand, begging them to increase oil production. They laugh in his face and tell him ‘no.’
Actually we should phase out oil/gas in time….right now it’s needed, so the US should produce it, but the goal should be no dependence on oil/gas/coal 20 years from now. We should switch to nuclear/renewable for power and hydrogen/ammonia for fuels which are essentially non-polluting.
Oil is a finite resource that will eventually run out. As one scientist pointed out, it’s better to hold it in storage, in case we ever face some global catastrophe and need to rebuild civilization, I think that’s a great idea.
James Lincoln says
fitna,
Thank you for your reply.
Just wondering, what do you think of ethanol as a fuel?
Does it have a place in the mix?
Fitna says
You’re welcome James.
As I understand it, it’s largely derived from corn/biomass and they need even more agricultural land to produce this corn for ethanol which could’ve went to feed livestock or produce more food for people.
Carbon neutral fuels would make sense, if we can take CO2 that we already produce and then convert it into a fuel. This way we’re not adding more of the harmful chemical into the atmosphere.
As it stands now ethanol isn’t much better than gasoline or the other fuels we produce, though it might be a little less polluting. I think switching to hydrogen or ammonia is better for the long term and they hold nearly as much energy as gasoline…without producing pollution. Though ammonia could be toxic to humans so it’d need to be well sealed in vehicles to avoid accidental release.
Let’s also not forget by getting off oil/gas, we stop our enemies from getting super-rich off us and funding their invasion/jihad. So it’s not just a benefit for the environment but we can possibly bankrupt our foes.
Fitna says
I should add, ammonia is also one of the most commonly produced chemicals used today, largely for fertilizers.
Presently it is produced by the Haber-Bosch method using petrochemicals, so they’re working on other non-carbon based means of production right now.
So there is already a massive infrastructure base for the production and transport of ammonia, and it may make for an easier transition. I’ve also read that existing gasoline engines can be converted to run on ammonia, so this could be a win-win for everyone.
James Lincoln says
fitna,
Thank you for your reply.
And, yes, ammonia is an interesting fuel:
https://nh3fuelassociation.org/introduction/
mick says
The oil fields are in the majority Arab Khuzestan, one of the most deprived areas in Iran. The Ahwazis have been leading the protests against the Persian mullatocracy, for several years.
Water shortage is a constant grouse.
Some of their best engineers, were and maybe still are, Armenian Christians.
Fitna says
Rather than destroy it, just remove key components, especially electronic hardware that cannot be easily replaced. Once the regime steps down, then they can make it operational again.
But with tyrannical regimes, it’s all or nothing, you get them or they get you…life or death struggle. So they should do whatever it takes. So long as Iran’s regime exists as is, killing millions of people to hold their power means nothing to them, they are Muslims and mass murder is what they’re done for 1400 years.
Biden should be sending them weapons to take down this regime, good opportunity for Israel to help them as well, NATO should join in too, the way they’re all sending arms to Ukraine….this fight is even more important as the Mullahs want to get nukes to use against the US/Israel.