Anti-Regime Protests Spread Across Iran Amid Inflation, Rial Collapse, and Economic Hardship

Iran has witnessed a surge in anti-regime protests starting in late December 2025, driven primarily by severe economic hardship but quickly escalating into direct challenges against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the Islamic Republic's clerical rule. Demonstrators in multiple cities have chanted slogans such as "Mullahs must leave Iran," "Death to the dictator," and "Until the mullah is shrouded, this homeland will not be free," reflecting deep frustration with the theocracy's governance. The unrest, the largest since the 2022 Mahsa Amini protests, began with shopkeepers striking in Tehran's Grand Bazaar over the rial's collapse and soaring inflation but spread rapidly to universities, rural provinces, and other urban centers.

The immediate trigger was the Iranian rial plummeting to record lows—exchanging at over 1.4 million to the US dollar in some markets—coupled with official inflation rates exceeding 42% in December 2025. Food and healthcare costs have skyrocketed, while prolonged US sanctions, mismanaged water resources leading to droughts, power shortages, and the aftermath of the June 2025 Israel-Iran conflict have compounded public suffering. Many protesters link economic woes to the regime's priorities, chanting "Neither Gaza nor Lebanon, my life for Iran" to criticize foreign expenditures and interventions.

Protests have spread from Tehran to cities including Isfahan, Shiraz, Kermanshah, Hamadan, Qeshm, Zanjan, Lordegan, Fasa, and Kouhdasht, involving merchants, students, and ordinary citizens. Reports indicate clashes with security forces, including the Basij paramilitary, with at least seven deaths—some protesters and one Basij member—along with injuries, arrests, and gunfire in several locations. Demonstrators have stormed government buildings, set fires, and torn down regime symbols in some areas, while authorities have responded with tear gas, arrests, and occasional live fire.

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The government's response has been mixed: reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian acknowledged "legitimate demands" and promised dialogue while appointing a new central bank governor and declaring holidays to reduce street presence. However, hardliners, including Supreme Leader Khamenei, have appointed tougher IRGC figures and blamed "hostile" external influences. Internet access has remained largely open, and initial media coverage was more transparent than in past unrest, though crackdowns appear to be intensifying.

These protests highlight systemic discontent beyond economics, with calls for regime change, monarchy restoration (e.g., support for exiled Reza Pahlavi), and rejection of clerical rule. While not yet nationwide or as coordinated as 2022, the rapid politicization and spread to rural areas signal potential for escalation. Observers note the regime's vulnerability amid Khamenei's age (86), economic isolation, and renewed US pressure under President Trump, who has praised protesters. The unrest poses the most serious domestic challenge to the Islamic Republic in years, testing its ability to contain dissent without full-scale repression.

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