Iran Seethes Ahead of Revolution Anniversary

Feb. 11, the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, promises to bring tests for all parties with a hand in the nation's fate, writes Gerald Seib. Big marches traditionally herald the anniversary, and members of the opposition movement that has bloomed since last June's election will undoubtedly come out in big numbers. That's the test for Mahmoud "Ahmadinejad and his government, which will have to decide how hard to bring down their iron fist."

The international community faces its own test. New sanctions are under way, but China appears opposed, and the ability of the US to influence China is at a low point—can America's allies tip the scales in favor of action? Lastly, the Obama administration faces a test on its policy of engagement with the regime, and the challenge of "a new way of thinking about economic sanctions," Seib writes for the Wall Street Journal.
(More Iran stories.)