This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
Protests in Iran, largely cut off from the world as officials cut off most Internet access, have grown to their biggest in several years as crowds flood streets in major cities, small towns, and neighborhoods across Tehran.
Bazaar strikes and demonstrations in Kurdish regions in western Iran and other cities early on January 8 gave way to larger demonstrations — the biggest show of public defiance since the 2022 uprising — after sunset, fueled by a call to action from opposition leader and former crown prince Reza Pahlavi.
Raw footage shows brutal crackdowns, but protesters adopted bolder tactics: direct clashes with security forces and torching police and Basij paramilitary outposts.
Norway-based Iran Human Rights reports at least 45 protesters killed as of January 8, with over 2,000 arrests. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, in a joint January 8 statement, accused Iranian forces of “unlawful use of force and firearms and mass arbitrary arrests.”
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addressed supporters on January 9, saying that “saboteurs, agitators” had “destroyed the country’s buildings to please” US President Donald Trump.
He added that Trump has the “blood of Iranians on his hands” following US strikes on Iran in June, and that the US leader would be “overthrown.”
On January 2, Trump said Washington would intervene in Iran if it kills protesters, stating in a Truth Social post: “We are locked and loaded and ready to go.”
He reiterated that stance late on January 8, saying in an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that Iranian authorities have been told “very strongly — even more strongly than I’m speaking to you right now — that if they do that [kill protesters], they’re going to have to pay hell.”
Pro-Islamic republic rallies may follow Friday Prayers later on January 9 with heavy state media coverage. Antiestablishment protests are expected to resume at dusk.
This round of protests, which began on December 28 in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, quickly snowballed, spreading to dozens of towns. By the evening of January 8, videos poured in from nearly every corner of the country showing huge crowds chanting and marching.
Authorities first throttled nationwide Internet speeds before enforcing a near-total blackout at 10:15 p.m. local time on January 8, severing phone lines too.
The unrest was initially driven by economic grievances before becoming full-fledged antiestablishment protests. Videos shared on social media overnight showed that protests were held even in Tehran’s affluent Saadatabat neighborhood.
News from inside is trickling out slowly amid the communications blackout, but US and European leaders have ramped up their focus on the chaos.
Addressing the Internet blackout, the Persian account of the US State Department wrote on X, “The Islamic republic regime shut off the internet completely to silence the Iranian people’s voices, but you can’t just flip a switch to kill their will.”
