Arab Spring 'About to Hit' Iran: Sen. Harry Reid

After Moammar Gadhafi of Libya became the latest victim of the Arab Spring uprising, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Iran's leaders may be next.

Following President Barack Obama's announcement that troops will leave Iraq by the year's end, Reid, a Nevada Democrat, said that the country could experience the democratic uprising that has claimed an unprecedented number of Middle Eastern strongmen.

Iran is the country in that part of the world that is way behind the times, Reid said Friday on a conference call with reporters. It's a country made up of a lot of young people. They should be aware that the spring that hit all parts of the world is about to hit them.

Iran's Green Movement

Iran already had a brush with protests, which turned violent and deadly, in 2009 when street demonstrations in Tehran were held following a controversial presidential election. The protesters, part of the Green Movement, sought the removal of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from office.

The remarks were in response to Sen. John McCain's critical comments of the Obama administration's handling of Iran. McCain, who lost the 2008 presidential election, on Sunday said that Obama should have supported the 2009 Tehran protests, which he said could have changed Iran's government with the U.S. public support.

Meanwhile, Obama announced that American troops will be out of Iraq, a neighbor to Iran, by the end of the year.

Reid said he spoke to the White House and expressed confidence that the U.S. can keep a close eye on Iran.