Vivian Bercovici: For the sake of Iran's brave protesters, the regime must be toppled

Letting the ayatollah stand would be a poor compromise

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Erfan Soltani, a 26-year-old Iranian clothing merchant, was arrested one week ago at his home in the city of Fardis. He is believed to have been charged with colluding against the country’s security activities and tried within days.

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He was scheduled to be hanged in public on Wednesday, according to the Kurdish human rights group Hengaw. At the last moment, his sentence was delayed.

Soltani is one of millions of Iranians who have taken to the streets since December to demand an end to the brutal, theofascist regime headed by Iran’s supreme leader, 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

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What began as a protest over the price of electronic goods in the Tehran bazaar quickly exploded into a full-scale revolt. Iran’s economy is ravaged. The regime’s control over every aspect of life is beyond oppressive. People of all ages are filling the streets to express their desperation to live freely in a secular society with a more liberal form of government.

More than 10,000 civilians, Soltani included, are believed to have been arrested on serious charges of treason-related crimes.

As the moment for Soltani’s death approached, tensions in the Middle East surged. Something big was brewing.

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