4th January 2026 - Iran is witnessing one of its most serious waves of unrest in years, as nationwide strikes and street protests enter a second week and expose growing cracks in the ruling theocracy’s ability to govern through fear and repression. What began as economic anger over currency collapse and unpaid wages has evolved into open defiance, with merchants, workers, students, and ordinary residents taking to the streets across multiple cities. As security forces respond with force, protesters are increasingly showing a willingness to confront repression rather than retreat, signalling a shift in the balance of fear that has long sustained the system.
The current uprising began on Sunday, 28 December 2025, when Tehran’s Grand Bazaar shut down in protest against economic collapse. The closure followed a dramatic plunge in the value of the national currency, with the US dollar surpassing 144,000 tomans. Merchants across the capital, including those at the Alaeddin and Charsou technology complexes, closed their shops and marched through central Tehran, chanting, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, we are all together”, a slogan heard during previous waves of unrest.
What initially appeared to be an economic backlash quickly spread across sectors and regions. By Tuesday, 30 December, industrial workers at the Kangan petro refinery in southern Iran stopped work, blocking entrances and demanding unpaid wages. Striking workers issued statements condemning what they described as a system that treats labourers as expendable, linking their grievances directly to the country’s political leadership.
Universities soon became major centres of resistance. Students at Tehran University, Sharif University of Technology, Amir Kabir Polytechnic, Khajeh Nasir University, and Beheshti University staged large scale walkouts and demonstrations. Protesters openly chanted “Death to the Dictator”, a level of defiance rarely seen on campuses since previous nationwide uprisings. At Beheshti University, students were filmed tearing down signage associated with the supreme leader’s office, while at Tehran University security forces reportedly withdrew rather than confront advancing demonstrators.
The state response was uneven but often violent. Tear gas was used in parts of Tehran and Kermanshah, clashes erupted in Shush market, and reports from Hamedan suggested that security forces opened live fire on protesters. In Tehran, victims of the state affiliated Hakim Project fraud gathered outside parliament to demand accountability, only to be dispersed by police.
By Sunday, 4 January 2026, the uprising had entered its eighth day. In Hamedan, protesters disarmed a Basij agent attempting to intimidate the crowd, an incident widely circulated online as a symbolic blow to the regime’s authority. In Kermanshah’s Jafarabad district, residents continued fierce street clashes following the killing of a young protester the previous night.
With bazaars closed, industries disrupted, and protesters refusing to retreat despite lethal force, Iran’s leadership faces a sustained challenge driven by economic desperation and an increasingly open rejection of clerical rule.
Those reported killed during the unrest include:
1 -Dariush Ansari Bakhtiarvand, 37, from Fouladshahr (Isfahan), 31 December 2025
2- Amir Hesam Khodayari Fard, 26, from Kuhdasht (Lorestan), 31 December 2025
3- Sajjad Valamanesh Zilayi, 28, from Lordegan (Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari), 1 January 2026
4- Ahmad Jalil, 21, from Lordegan (Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari), 1 January 2026
5- Shayan Asadollahi, 30, from Azna (Lorestan), 1 January 2026
6- Mostafa Fallahi, 15, from Azna (Lorestan), 1 January 2026
7- Vahab Ghaedi (Mousavi), 30, from Azna (Lorestan), 1 January 2026
8- Khodadad Shirvani, 37, from Marvdasht (Fars), 1 January 2026
9- Ahmadreza Amani, 27, from Azna (Lorestan), 1 January 2026
10- Mansour Mokhtari, from Marvdasht (Fars), 1 January 2026
11- Ahad Ebrahim Pour Abdoli, 35, from Nurabad (Delfan, Lorestan), 1 January 2026
12- Ali Azizi Jafarabadi, 42, from Harsin (Kermanshah), 2 January 2026
13- Amir Hossein Bayati, 35, from Hamedan, 2 January 2026
14- Hossein Rabiei, from Qom, 2 January 2026
15- Mohammad Moghaddasi (Bazouneh), from Malekshahi (Ilam), 3 January 2026
16- Farez (Fars) Agha Mohammadi, from Malekshahi (Ilam), 3 January 2026
17- Mehdi Emami Pour, from Malekshahi (Ilam), 3 January 2026
18- Reza Azimzadeh, from Malekshahi (Ilam), 3 January 2026
