Khamenei is dead — and Iranians dare to hope for freedom again after decades of tyranny

I have been witness to Iranian disbelief turning into celebration after Khamenei's death. It has revealed a nation's long-suppressed desire for normalcy and freedom from clerical rule.

Nazee Moinian has a Ph.D. in Iranian Studies from the University of St. Andrews. Her forthcoming book is "Narratives of Grievance in Iran’s Foreign Policy." Since 2021, she has been an associate fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C. 

Then it dawned on me that this was no longer a question. It was disbelief, compounded by a rare combination of mourning and celebration. It was a look into the surreal world in which Iranians had come to live, as if anything that happened in Iran was like sleepwalking into someone else’s nightmare.

And then there was a flood of messages filled with exclamation marks and fireworks emojis. The mood shifted from disbelief to jubilation. Iranians were dancing in the streets, honking their car horns and chanting "Freedom! FREEDOM!"