Israel urges Iranians to revolt but privately assesses they’ll be ‘slaughtered’

 Israel urges Iranians to revolt but privately assesses they’ll be ‘slaughtered’

Senior Israeli officials have told U.S. diplomats that Iranian protesters will “get slaughtered” if they take to the streets against their government even as Israel publicly calls for a popular uprising, according to a State Department cable reviewed by The Washington Post.

The cable, circulated by the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem on Friday, relayed an Israeli assessment that Iran’s regime is “not cracking” and is willing to “fight to the end” despite the Feb. 28 killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the ongoing U.S. and Israeli bombing campaign.

Narges Bajoghli, an Iran expert at Johns Hopkins University, said that Iranians have long been skeptical of Israeli intentions and that the dual messages on display in the cable will be viewed by many as callous and exploitative of Iranian lives.

“I think a lot of people will feel very betrayed by this assessment,” Bajoghli said.

The Israeli Embassy in Washington said Israel is “focused on eliminating the regime’s military capabilities — to everyone’s benefit.”