The thirteenth day of the war has also passed. The United States and Israel continue striking various parts of the country, especially Tehran. Everyday life in Tehran has turned into a nightmare. The constant sound of fighter jets and explosions day and night, worsening living and health conditions, shortages of medicine, and rising prices compared with before the war are what citizens are facing in the second week of the air attacks. Tehran is gradually turning into ruins reminiscent of Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

The wounded Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is clinging to power by the thinnest of threads and trying to prolong its survival. The “cardboard” leadership of Mojtaba Khamenei issued a written message ordering that the Strait of Hormuz be kept closed—something the Revolutionary Guard had already begun implementing through mine-laying operations in the strait. Although Donald Trump announced via social media that IRGC boats in the Strait of Hormuz had been removed, the reality showed that the IRGC continues mine-laying operations using additional fast boats and even underwater drones. Attacks on several commercial vessels were also among the actions carried out by the Revolutionary Guard yesterday and today.

Despite the release of strategic oil reserves into global markets by the United States and other countries—and assurances that U.S. naval forces would escort commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz—oil prices continue fluctuating around $100 per barrel. This has pushed global stock markets, including New York stock exchange, into a downward trend.

The impact of rising oil prices is not limited to stock markets; if this trend continues, it could trigger an unprecedented global economic crisis. The threat to close the Strait of Hormuz, attacks on neighboring countries, and readiness to massacre civilians are precisely the priorities that the regime’s leaders spent years preparing for—instead of addressing the economy, livelihoods, and living conditions of the Iranian people. After all, what else could a rigid religious dictatorship, whose sole goal has been survival, theft, and plunder at any cost, be expected to do?

Beyond keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed, the occupation of streets by Basij thugs and killers affiliated with security forces has become another instrument for the regime’s survival at any cost. It is no surprise that Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and other officials are pleading with their loyal enforcers not to leave the streets and to maintain their checkpoints. These armed street enforcers have themselves been targeted by Israeli strikes over the past two days.

Meanwhile, the body of Ali Khamenei, despite Islamic customs requiring swift burial, remains unburied. On one hand, the Revolutionary Guard fears an Israeli airstrike during the funeral and has therefore postponed the ceremony, much as happened with Hassan Nasrallah. On the other hand, if it does accept the risk of holding the funeral, it intends to maximize the political impact by gathering loyal supporters from across the country to demonstrate to the world that the new regime under “Khamenei Number Two” supposedly enjoys popular support.