From the collapse of the currency to the streets in revolt: five days of protests against the economic crisis degenerate into clashes with the police, deaths and repression as the regime threatens a hard line. Donald Trump threatens armed intervention to support the protesters.
The protests that are going onIran have their roots in the economic crisis that has been affecting the country for months, but in recent days they have taken on the contours of a real own national revolt. The demonstrations began on Sunday, when traders from several cities took to the streets to protest against it the collapse of the rial, the national currency, overwhelmed by inflation and international sanctions. The punitive measures imposed for the Tehran’s refusal to scale back its nuclear program have aggravated an already compromised situation, while the June war with Israel has further exposed the country’s structural weaknesses Iranian state.
During the first days, the authorities tried to contain the tension by promising responses to the economic demands. However, as the hours passed, the protests spread and radicalized, involving students, young people and entire urban neighborhoods. On Wednesday 31 December 2025, the fourth day of the mobilization, thousands of people took to the streets in Arak, Khorramabad, Shiraz, Dorud, Nahavand, Yasuj, Rasht, Shahr-e Qods, Baghmalek, Kuhdasht, Fuladshahr, Asadabad, Ramhormoz, Babol, Qeshm, Lali, Masjed Soleyman, Marlik and in numerous areas of Tehran. The slogans chanted – «Iranians, shout for your rights» and «This is the year of blood, Seyed Ali Khamenei will be overthrown» – have marked a qualitative leap in the clash with power. Wednesday night was marked by episodes of particular tension. In Tehran, after the student protests at theBeheshti University, plainclothes officers and intelligence men broke into the women’s dormitory, taking some students away. The reaction was immediate: dozens of students gathered outside, facing the security forces and shouting «Dishonorable». On Thursday the situation worsened further. On the fifth consecutive day of demonstrations, violent clashes broke out between demonstrators and police which caused at least five deaths with the Pasdaran shooting at eye level. According to theFars agency, three people were killed during a protest outside a police station in western province of Lorestan. Two other victims were recorded in Lordegan, near the residence of the local governor.
The violence came in the aftermath of the killing of a 21-year-old member of the Basij, the volunteer militia tasked with defending the Islamic Republic. The young man, Amir Hossein Khodaeifardied in Kuhdasht after protesters threw stones at security forces. According to the deputy governor of Lorestan, Saeed Pour Ali, at least 13 members of the police and Basij were injured in the clashes. At the same time, acts of sabotage and attacks against regime structures were recorded in other cities. To Hamedan And Asadabad a Basij base and a Ministry of Intelligence building were set on fire, despite sub-zero temperatures and the intervention of special units with water cannons. TO Fuladshahrin the province of Isfahan, repressive forces opened fire on protesters, who responded by occupying some streets and setting fires. Similar scenes occurred ad Arak, Rasht And Ramhormoz.
The climate also remains tense on the political and institutional front. The regime’s leaders have issued increasingly harsh warnings. “Riots and destruction of public property have nothing to do with civil protests,” he said Pour Ali, accusing “the enemies” of exploiting the situation. The Attorney General Mohammad Movahedi-Azad warned that any attempt to turn economic protests into “insecurity” or “destruction” will receive a “legal, firm and proportionate” response. Ultimately, a deep economic crisis remains. According to the World Bank, food inflation has reached 64.2 percent, one of the highest levels in the world, while the rial lost around 60 percent of its value since the June War. The failure to reach an agreement with the United States on nuclear power has prevented any easing of sanctions. Added to this is growing repression: in solo 2025, more than 1,870 people were executed, nearly double the previous year, according to data from the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center. In this context, the violence of recent days risks pushing the regime towards a new repressive crackdown, while the streets continue to openly challenge power, transforming an economic protest into a far-reaching political crisis. The president of the United States on Friday Donald Trump intervened on his social network, Truth Socialstating that if Iran were to open fire on peaceful demonstrators and cause their deaths, as he said is usually the case, the United States would intervene in their support. “We are ready, armed and prepared to act,” he wrote. To the position taken by Washington replied the supreme advisor to the Iranian Leader, Ali Larijaniwho also warned on Friday that Trump must be aware of the fact that “American interference in the protests in Iran is equivalent to dragging the entire region into chaos.”
