1. Western Media’s “Moderate”

How did the news interpret the death of a man who spent his career calling the United States the “Great Satan” and threatening violence against US and Iranian citizens alike?

The Washington Post obituary of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei opened with an oddly gentle portrait, “With his bushy white beard and easy smile, Ayatollah Khamenei cut a more avuncular figure in public… known to be fond of Persian poetry and classic Western novels, especially Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables.”

The New York Times obituary of Ali Khamenei followed a similar pattern. The paper described him as a “hard-line cleric who made Iran a regional power,” emphasizing his public persona and intellectual interests.

The tone did not match the regime he led: a theocratic state responsible for decades of repression, proxy warfare, and chants of “Death to America.” Readers were reminded of his literary tastes, his public image, and his decades of leadership before they were confronted with the reality of the ideological system he spent his life defending.

When the ideological baseline shifts this far, the obituary of a revolutionary theocrat begins to sound less like history and more like public relations.

2. How Mainstream Media Got Here

This is not a new phenomenon, and the problem is not merely tone. It’s a delusion. 

In August 1939, just days before Germany invaded Poland, the New York Times published a feature describing Adolf Hitler at his Bavarian mountain retreat in tranquil, almost pastoral terms, focusing on the scenery and his daily routines rather than the regime he led.

Washington Post previously had opinion writer Karen Attiah react to the October 7, 2023 massacre by posting on social media, “What did y’all think decolonization meant? Vibes? Papers? Essays?” [She was not removed from her position until years later, for praising the killing of political commentator Charlie Kirk.]

These are only two newspapers among many, but they illustrate a larger problem with modern media framing to appease regressive ideological movements. They represent a growing ecosystem of commentators chasing the attention received by figures like Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, Nick Fuentes, AOC, Mamdani, whose careers have been built on narratives of Western decline. They don’t represent objective truth.

3. Primary Sources vs Biases

Ali Khamenei may appear moderate only when compared to his teacher and ideological mentor, Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic. Khamenei rose through the revolutionary system built by Khomeini, becoming Supreme Leader in 1989.

Both Khomeini’s worldviews were rooted in 7th-century assumptions, not modernity. 

Calling this worldview moderate because it is less extreme than its predecessor is like severing someone’s arms and calling it a moderate injury because their legs and abdomen were not also severed—and their eyes were not gouged out like the protesters who resisted this medieval warlord.

To avoid disputes about interpretation, the next two sections will rely on primary sources, especially speeches, interviews, legal texts written by the Ayatollahs, and, bizarrely enough, A. Khomeini’s Twitter account. 

4. Ayatollahs Violently Hate US, Secularism, Not Just Israel

From the earliest days of the Iranian Revolution, the US was not treated as a diplomatic adversary. It was framed as the central enemy of the Islamic system itself.

Below are representative statements drawn from speeches and writings by Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic and the mentor whose revolutionary ideology shaped the worldview later defended by Ali Khamenei.

“America is the Great Satan.” (1979; R. Khomeini speech following the Iranian Revolution)

“In this revolution the Great Satan, which is the United States, gathers around itself the devils both inside Iran and outside it.” (1979; R. Khomeini speech on foreign enemies of the revolution)

“The United States is the enemy of Islam and the Muslims.” (1979; R. Khomeini revolutionary speech addressing foreign powers)

“All the problems of the Muslims come from America.” (1979; R. Khomeini speech describing Western influence in the Middle East)

The ideological hostility toward the United States quickly translated into action. In November 1979, Iranian revolutionaries seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran and held American diplomats hostage for 444 days. R. Khomeini celebrated it.

“America can’t do a damn thing against us.” (1979; R. Khomeini statement during the U.S. embassy hostage crisis)

“The American embassy is a center of espionage.” (1979; R. Khomeini statement defending the seizure of the embassy)

“This action has many benefits… it has united our people against America.” (1979; R. Khomeini speech supporting the hostage crisis)

Hostility toward the United States was inseparable from a broader doctrine of revolutionary violence. In a series of lectures delivered before the revolution and published in Islamic Government, R. Khomeini argued that violence against enemies was necessary. Notable quotes published from these 1970 lectures include:

“Islam commands its followers to wage war against unbelief in order to make them submit to the laws of God.”

“A few corrupt people or instigators of corruption must be killed in order to secure the society.”

“Muslims must prepare whatever force they can muster so that their enemies will not dare oppress them.”

“We have no choice but to destroy those systems of government that are corrupt and overthrow the treacherous regimes imposed upon us.”

When Ali Khamenei became Supreme Leader in 1989, he inherited that framework.

“The U.S. government is arrogant and oppressive and stands against the interests of nations.” (2007 speech by A. Khamenei criticizing American policy)

“The United States is the main enemy of the {Islamic Republic}.” (2009 speech by A. Khamenei during his tenure as Supreme Leader)

“The American regime seeks domination over the Muslim world.” (speech by A. Khamenei on foreign policy)

Unlike earlier revolutionary leaders, A. Khamenei delivered violent messages not just through official speeches, but also through social media accounts, especially Twitter:

“Some ask whether it is possible to confront a modern, powerful system like the U.S. government. Yes. The Iranian people have confronted it and weakened this great enemy.” (Nov 2, 2024; official @khamenei_ir account)

“The United States of America and the Zionist regime will definitely receive a crushing response for what they do against Iran and the Resistance Front.” (Nov 2, 2024; official @khamenei_ir account)

“The Zionist regime made a mistake and must be punished and it shall be.” (April 10, 2024; public statement reported internationally)

“We slapped America in the face.” (2025; A. Khamenei speech following Iranian missile strikes on U.S. bases in the region)

“A sign of the decline of the corrupt, oppressive U.S. empire is its irrational interference in our country’s affairs.” (Feb 17, 2026; official khamenei.ir account)

“With reliance on God and confidence in the people’s support, we will bring the enemy to its knees.” (Jan 3, 2026; official khamenei.ir account to nearly 15 million followers)

5. Manual For Violence If A. Khamenei appears moderate when compared to his predecessor, the reason becomes clearer when one examines the legal worldview articulated by R. Khomeini.

Khomeini authored a legal manual titled Tahrir al-Wasila, which detailed rulings governing daily life in an Islamic state. These rulings were intended to describe how society should function, but reflect legal assumptions developed a millennium ago.

“The drinker of alcohol must receive eighty lashes.”

“The fornicator must receive one hundred lashes.”

“If the offender is married, the punishment is stoning.”

“Intercourse with a wife is forbidden before she completes nine years of age.”

Khomeini’s legal manual also includes rulings addressing sexual acts with animals.

“If a man has intercourse with an animal whose meat is normally eaten, the animal must be slaughtered and burned.”

“If the animal is one normally used for riding or work, it must be taken out of the town where the act occurred and sold elsewhere.”

In other words, if a raped animal could not simply be destroyed, the ruling required removing it from the local community. It allows selling raped animals, just not in your local community. R. Khomeini believes you should sell the raped animals elsewhere.

6. A Clear Pattern That Must End

The founder of the Islamic Republic, R. Khomeini, articulated a legal and political system rooted in religious doctrines that developed more than a thousand years ago. His lectures and legal writings openly justified violence against enemies, corporal punishment as law, and social rules that are unrecognizable in most modern societies.

His successor, Ali Khamenei, did not abandon this worldview. He inherited it, defended it, and spent decades repeating its central themes: hostility toward the United States, suspicion of the West, and confrontation with the enemies of the Islamic system.

The “moderate” framing only exists because the comparison is being made within that same ideological framework. It is not a comparison to Western ideology, it is ideology that predates modern democracy, human rights, and, especially, secular governance.

Khamenei can only be described as moderate if evaluated through a medieval lens.

Still, the ideology of the Islamic Republic is frequently repackaged using modern political language. Terms such as justice, anti-imperialism, and resistance are used to frame what is, at its core, a rigid theocratic system rooted in ancient jurisprudence.

This rhetorical rebranding allows medieval political ideas to be presented as something contemporary and even progressive, with whatever end goal the reader imagines.

The record speaks for itself, even if some journalists wish to whitewash a dictator.

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)