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Contrasting realities: On the left, a city shrouded in darkness with limited electricity; on the right, a brightly lit cryptocurrency mining facility consuming massive power.
Two-minute read
The Iranian regime’s recent 12-day military conflict, intended as a display of national strength, instead served as an unplanned audit of its own systemic rot. As the country braced for war, revelations published in state-run media in late June and early July 2025 exposed two monumental corruption scandals at the heart of the state apparatus. These reports detail how regime insiders have exploited both the nation’s military supply chain and its energy grid for personal enrichment, leaving ordinary Iranians to bear the cost.
A Corrupt War Machine Built on Bribery
On June 27, 2025, the state-run newspaper Arman published a stunning report revealing that the regime’s military procurement is deeply compromised by corruption. The report questioned how advanced components for military drones and other equipment used in the recent conflict managed to enter the country through official channels. The answer, according to experts cited in the article, was a coordinated scheme of bribery and deliberate mislabeling at official customs points.
The investigation found that sensitive and advanced components were smuggled into Iran by being declared as innocuous civilian or industrial goods. For instance, high-precision GPS receivers essential for drone navigation were passed off as “simple communication modules,” while thermal imaging cameras were disguised as “industrial filming equipment.” This deception was not accidental but facilitated by what the paper called “bribery or the exercise of influence.”
As a result, critical military-grade goods that should have been confiscated were instead allowed to flow unimpeded into the domestic market, highlighting a severe vulnerability in national security driven by internal greed.
Bitcoin Mining in #Iran, #IRGC Operations and the Power Grid Crisishttps://t.co/XlSLOyWBIO
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) May 26, 2025
Plundering the People’s Power for Illicit Profit
Just days later, on July 7, 2025, another state-run newspaper, Setareh Sobh, revealed how the conflict had inadvertently exposed a massive electricity theft operation costing the Iranian economy $3 billion annually. When the regime shut down internet access during the war, the national power company, Tavanir, registered a sudden 2,400-megawatt drop in electricity consumption. This figure precisely matched the estimated power being stolen by a vast, illegal network of cryptocurrency mining farms.
These illegal operations, run by well-connected profiteers, are a primary driver of Iran’s severe power deficit. The report revealed there are over one million unauthorized crypto-mining devices operating across the country, often hidden in remote locations and abandoned buildings.
This illicit activity accounts for an estimated 15-20% of the nation’s entire electricity shortfall, which in the summer months leads to crippling blackouts that damage industries, shutter businesses, and inflict misery on millions of Iranians facing extreme heat. While the public and legitimate businesses pay the price, regime-linked individuals exploit subsidized electricity to generate immense personal wealth. The problem has become so severe that the Ministry of Energy is now offering rewards of up to 200 million tomans for citizens who report these illegal operations.
#Iranian Regime Officials Caught in Massive Corruption Scandal Over Gift Cardshttps://t.co/9M3p5c4GU6
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) May 28, 2025
A System Built on Self-Enrichment
These two episodes, brought to light under the pressure of a national crisis, paint a clear picture of a system where self-enrichment trumps national interest. One scandal reveals a military apparatus compromised from within by officials willing to sell out national security for a bribe. The other exposes a parasitic operation that drains the national economy and plunges the populace into darkness for the benefit of a select few.
The common thread is a kleptocratic ethos that has infested the regime’s core institutions. Far from demonstrating strength, the 12-day war has only confirmed that the greatest threat to Iran’s stability and the well-being of its people is the very regime that claims to protect them.