Iran is witnessing one of the most severe and violent waves of unrest in modern history, as nationwide protests continue to spread and intensify across the country.
What began as demonstrations driven by economic hardship has evolved into a broad-based movement openly challenging the country’s political leadership and governing system.
For nearly two weeks, crowds numbering in the thousands have marched nightly in cities and towns across all provinces. Demonstrations have been reported in Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, Shiraz, Tabriz, and numerous smaller cities. Protesters have gathered despite a heavy security presence, chanting slogans that reflect a sharp escalation in public demands. Amongst the most frequently reported chants is “death to Khamenei,” a direct reference to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In many locations, demonstrators have also chanted “Javid Shah” (“Long live the Shah”) or “ King Reza Pahlavi” (“Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince of Iran”) called for the return of the Pahlavi dynasty, which ruled Iran prior to the 1979 Islamic Revolution. These slogans represent a significant shift from earlier protest movements that focused primarily on economic grievances or policy reforms.
According to reporting and analysis, the renewed invocation of the Pahlavi era reflects widespread frustration with clerical rule rather than a unified call for the restoration of the monarchy. For many protesters, the chant “Javid Shah” functions as a symbol of rejection of the Islamic Republic and its ideological foundations. It expresses nostalgia for a period associated—rightly or wrongly—with secular governance, national development, and stronger global engagement, in contrast to decades of isolation, repression, and economic decline under the current system. Observers note that references to the Pahlavi dynasty, once taboo, have become a powerful form of political defiance and a way to articulate a desire for a fundamentally different political future rather than a specific governing model.
The protests cut across social, economic, and ethnic lines. Students, workers, shopkeepers, professionals, women, retirees, and unemployed youth have all been seen participating. Demonstrations frequently take place after nightfall, when crowds gather in residential neighbourhoods, marketplaces, and public squares. Despite mass arrests and violent crackdowns, protesters continue to return to the streets, suggesting a level of determination that authorities have so far been unable to suppress.
Economic distress remains a central driver. Iran’s currency has sharply depreciated, inflation has eroded purchasing power, and unemployment and poverty have intensified. However, analysts emphasise that economic hardship alone does not explain the scale or persistence of the unrest. Protesters repeatedly cite corruption, lack of accountability, restrictions on personal freedoms, and the absence of political representation as core grievances.
Violent Crackdown and Rising Death Toll
The State response has been swift and forceful. Security forces, including police, intelligence units, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, have deployed tear gas, batons, metal pellets, and live ammunition to disperse crowds. Numerous eyewitness accounts and video footage circulating before internet shutdowns show armed forces firing into crowds and conducting mass arrests. Reliable casualty figures remain difficult to verify due to widespread internet and telecommunications blackouts, restrictions on journalists, and limited access to hospitals and detention centres. Human rights organisations and international media have therefore relied on activist networks and medical sources to compile estimates.
According to the most conservative figures cited by international human rights groups and news agencies, hundreds of people have been killed since the protests began, with thousands more injured or detained. These figures alone place the current unrest amongst the deadliest protest movements in Iran in recent years.
At the same time, some media outlets reporting from outside Iran present far higher estimates. Iran International, a Persian-language broadcaster with sources inside the country, has reported that at least 2,000 people may have been killed within 48 hours, even under what it describes as conservative estimates. These figures have not been independently verified due to the information blackout and remain contested. Nevertheless, the stark discrepancy between official silence and external reporting has intensified international concern.
Human rights organisations warn that past experience suggests initial casualty figures in Iran are often significantly underreported. During previous nationwide protests, later investigations revealed death tolls far higher than those initially acknowledged by authorities.
Internet Shutdowns and Information Control
In early January 2026, Iranian authorities imposed a near-total shutdown of internet, mobile data and all phone services across much of the country. Digital rights groups describe the blackout as a deliberate tactic to suppress reporting, disrupt protest coordination, and prevent documentation of abuses. The shutdown has left families struggling to locate detained relatives and has made independent verification of events on the ground extremely difficult. Human rights monitors warn that such conditions increase the risk of extrajudicial killings, torture, and enforced disappearances.
A Human Rights Crisis
While the protests carry clear political implications, many observers stress that they represent a broader human rights crisis. At their core, the demonstrations reflect demands for fundamental rights: the right to protest without fear of death or imprisonment, freedom of expression, access to information, equality before the law, and dignity in daily life. Women continue to play a visible role in the protests, building on the momentum generated by earlier movements against gender-based restrictions. Ethnic and religious minority regions, particularly Kurdish and Baluchi areas, have reportedly experienced disproportionate levels of violence during the crackdown.
An Uncertain Path Ahead
The scale of the unrest and the intensity of the state response have drawn growing international attention. Governments, journalists, and human rights organisations have called for restraint, transparency, and accountability. However, with communications restricted and no clear signs of compromise from authorities, the immediate future remains uncertain. What is clear is that the protests represent more than a temporary eruption of anger. They reflect decades of accumulated frustration over repression, economic decline, and political exclusion. Whether the movement leads to structural change or is suppressed through force, it has already altered public discourse inside Iran and intensified global scrutiny. As protests continue and information remains scarce, one message repeatedly emerges from the streets: the demonstrators are not asking the world to fight their battles, but they are demanding not to be silenced or forgotten.
________________________________________ References • The Guardian – “Iran protests gather momentum as regime cracks down” (11 January 2026) https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/11/iran-protests-gather-momentum-demonstrators-protest-movement • The Jerusalem Post – “Why Iranians are chanting ‘Long live the Shah’” https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-882053
