"Iran will not surrender and will continue to defend itself," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, told the public in a televised speech this week, following days of Israeli bombing and Iran's retaliatory strikes.

His exact location is unclear. Rumors and hints from the US and the Israeli governments indicate that he could be personally targeted at some point by an Israeli air strike. If Khamenei is assassinated, he would share the fate of many high-ranking members of his regime who have been killed in recent days.

And this has prompted many to ask — how can a regime that fails to protect its own top officials be trusted to protect Iran's borders?

"Despite all claims [by the Iranian government] about missile defense or protecting command centers, the absolute inefficiency of this regime has become apparent to the public," exiled Iran expert and sociologist Majid Golpour told DW.

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