What is Happening Right Now Inside the Islamic Republic of Iran?
Speaker: Andrew Ghalili, Policy Director at the National Union for Democracy in Iran
Date: Wednesday, February 11, 2026
Time: 12 Noon
As I write these words, negotiators between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran have just begun in Oman over their nuclear program. Yet, beginning on December 28, 2025, millions of protesters have poured into the streets in over 400 cities throughout Iran. One of the immediate reasons was that the rial has been profoundly devalued. Today it is approximately 42 thousand rials per dollar. Iranians are also suffering a tremendous water drought. They turn on the tap, and nothing comes out. However, what most of the Iranians want desperately are their basic human rights and freedoms. Yet the huge tidal wave for a counter-revolution on the streets of Iran has been met with unparalleled, brutal force. According to the National Union of Democracy in Iran, at least 40,000 protesters have been left murdered on the streets, crying out for the very freedoms we cherish in the United States.
If the United States fails to act, will this simply serve to embolden and further empower the Islamist Republic and all of the terror proxies throughout the region? Will this forever be a black stain on America’s moral legacy? How might this serve to empower Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis?
Answering these questions and others is Andrew Ghalili, Policy Director for the National Union for Democracy in Iran.
About our Speaker: Andrew Ghalili Andrew joined NUFDI as a Senior Policy Analyst in 2023 and was promoted to Policy Director in January of 2026.
After graduating from Johns Hopkins University with an Economics degree, Andrew received his MA in Global Security Studies and his Certificate in Intelligence, also from Johns Hopkins. While in graduate school, Andrew served as a foreign policy intern in the United States Senate. Andrew was previously a Senior Policy Analyst at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA) from 2021-2023.
His writing has appeared in The National Interest, 19 Forty Five, Algemeiner, The Washington Times, The Jewish News Syndicate, Mosaic, and more.
