Iran’s military and security forces have been ordered to prepare for a potential American ground invasion and to suppress domestic unrest without waiting for orders from central command, according to a new directive circulated by the country’s armed forces leadership, a well-placed source told The Media Line.

The directive, disseminated to military and security units under the General Staff of the Armed Forces, instructs forces to secure sensitive areas, establish defensive deployments, and ready themselves for the “intervention of hostile field elements across different regions.” Crucially, the order authorizes units to engage independently — without direct instructions from higher command — a posture Iranian authorities describe as “Atash be Ekhtiar,” or “fire at will.”

The move signals that Iran’s leadership is preparing for a scenario in which centralized command structures or communications networks could be severely disrupted or destroyed. Analysts and sources draw a pointed comparison to Germany’s World War II-era Operation Valkyrie, which similarly devolved operational authority to field units in anticipation of command breakdown.

The directive reflects mounting concern within the Islamic Republic that the next phase of the war could involve ground combat and urban fighting. Iranian commanders view the threat from armed opposition groups in Tehran, Iranian Kurdistan, and western and southwestern Iran as serious. In eastern Iran, active Baloch armed groups add another dimension to the internal security challenge. Large segments of tribal populations across the country’s west and southwest also possess firearms, primarily hunting rifles obtained illegally.

Regime anxiety has been further heightened by propaganda from the Mojahedin-e Khalq regarding its so-called Liberation Army and “Rebel Units,” as well as rumors of an “Immortal Guard” loyal to monarchist supporters — a claim addressed publicly for the first time by Reza Pahlavi ahead of Chaharshanbe Suri celebrations.

Recent U.S. military moves have sharpened those fears. The deployment of Marines and airborne forces to the region, combined with repeated statements from President Donald Trump and other American officials raising the possibility of a ground operation, have intensified calculations within Iran’s leadership. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf — who holds no formal military authority — has publicly warned Washington against any ground assault on Iranian islands, a statement that itself underscores the regime’s level of concern.

Farzin Nadimi, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute and analyst of Iranian military affairs, told The Media Line that a full-scale ground invasion remains unlikely in the near term, but that more limited operations are plausible.

“What appears more likely is not a full-scale ground invasion, but rather limited, selective, and complementary ground operations — such as special forces missions and efforts to temporarily control certain islands or strategic coastal positions overlooking the Strait of Hormuz,” Nadimi said. “Such a scenario differs fundamentally from an all-out ground war, yet remains costly and high-risk.”

He added that even limited ground engagement would not be decisive on its own. The outcome of the conflict, he said, will ultimately depend on the sustained effectiveness of the air campaign and its ability to destabilize the Islamic Republic.

Iranian state media has offered its own warnings. The Tehran Times, citing an Iranian security analyst, reported Thursday that in the event of a U.S. ground attack, Iran would move to seize the coastlines of the UAE and Bahrain.

A previously published audio recording attributed to a Basij commander in Tehran reinforced the picture of forces being readied for urban combat. In it, the commander instructed Basij units that in the event of a drone strike, they should clear the area, fall back into surrounding alleys, and take up positions to engage any hostile armed force that emerged.

The directive’s issuance also draws attention to the conspicuous absence of Mojtaba Khamenei, the Supreme Leader’s son and a powerful figure within the regime, who has largely vanished from public view in recent weeks. That the leadership is proceeding with major wartime directives amid his absence suggests internal uncertainty at the highest levels of the Islamic Republic, even as it prepares for what it views as an escalating and increasingly direct confrontation.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)