Protests have subsided in Iran, but clerics cannot yet proclaim victory

IRAN’S SUPREME LEADER, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, may be sighing with relief. After the death in September of Mahsa Amini, a young woman arrested for not wearing a “proper” headscarf, the country saw daily protests, many led by women. Four months on, the cries of “Women, life, freedom” have all but petered out. University campuses, where demonstrations continued longest, resemble citadels, policed by security guards and cameras. Banners praising the Islamic Republic abound. And yet Iranians are still seething.

The regime has sentenced over a hundred protesters to death after cursory trials for the all-encompassing crime of “corruption on Earth”. Four have been hanged. It has locked up nearly 20,000 people, including top footballers, film stars, journalists and students. Digital communication is more restricted than ever. “Ever more people are disappointed and getting back to their lives,” says one Iranian journalist.