Video shows anti-government protests spread to most provinces in Iran

Analysis by BBC Verify and BBC Persian found that protests have broken out in at least 17 of Iran’s 31 provinces, posing the biggest challenge to the country’s clerical institutions since 2022.

The BBC’s analysis of the protests only included those for which we had verified video footage – the real number is almost certainly much higher. have Protests were also reported in 11 other provinces.

A wave of protests has spread rapidly across Iran since Dec. 28, when the country’s currency plummeted against the U.S. dollar and other major foreign currencies, with anger initially erupting in the capital Tehran.

Verified footage from the past 10 days shows anti-government demonstrations and rallies in more than 50 towns and cities across the country, including some areas previously considered highly loyal to the state.

We geolocated and checked release dates on more than 100 videos, charting the scale of the unrest as people took to the streets of many of Iran’s major cities, presenting the country with its biggest challenge since the Women, Life and Freedom protests of 2022.

The video also showed protests in Qom in central Iran and Mashhad in the northeast, both of which have historically been home to people fiercely loyal to the Islamic Republic.

Professor Sina Azodi, director of the Middle East Studies Program at George Washington University, said the unrest in these cities was “very telling” and evidence that the government’s “support base is also suffering under economic hardship.”

Authorities have traditionally used violence to suppress unrest. The 2022 protests were sparked by the death in custody of a young woman, Mahsa Amini, who was detained in Tehran for wearing an “inappropriate headscarf” – more than 550 people allegedly killed by security forcesAccording to human rights groups.

While the latest response from police and security forces initially appeared to be more restrained, verified video showed officers increasing their use of force since Saturday. The change in approach coincided with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s first public reaction to the protests that day, in which “Thugs must be put to rest,” he said.

Since the supreme leader’s remarks, Iran’s Justice Minister Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje said authorities would “listen to protesters and critics who have legitimate concerns about their livelihoods and social and economic well-being.”

But he added that they would “resolutely deal with those who try to take advantage of the situation, incite unrest and undermine the security of the country and people”. The powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also warned protesters in Lorestan province that they would no longer tolerate street rallies.

BBC Persian has so far identified at least 11 people who have died since December 28 through verified funeral footage and interviews with family and friends.

Foreign human rights group HRANA said at least 35 people have been killed in the unrest so far, including two people affiliated with the security forces.

One of the most violent crackdowns took place on Saturday in Malekshahi, a small town in the western province of Ilam. Verified video showed a small demonstration on Command Avenue, where officials from several state agencies were seated, before what appeared to be gunfire erupted. Human rights groups said four people died in the incident, while the semi-official Meir and Tasnim news agencies put the death toll at three.

Footage later showed many people being taken to hospital. It was unclear from the video the condition of the person seen in the video.

Multiple verified videos shot in the nearby city of Ilam showed security forces opening fire on the Imam Khomeini Hospital in the city center late Saturday. Iran’s president has ordered an investigation into the incident.

Security forces have also opened fire on protesters in other cities. Troops wearing military gear and riot gear were seen firing at demonstrators in Fassa, in southwestern Fars province.

Experts warn that a heavy-handed response by security forces could exacerbate the challenges facing the government.

Peyman Jafari, assistant professor of international relations at the College of William and Mary in the United States, told BBC Verify: “Escalating repression may deepen popular dissatisfaction with the political system, while also risking fatigue and demoralization among police and security forces, who may at some point stop complying with orders.”

While much of the violence seen by the BBC was carried out by security forces, there were also clips showing demonstrators attacking government troops. In Qom, a video showed police officers on motorcycles being stoned as they sped past a small group of people.

Another dramatic clip showed a security officer on a motorcycle being set on fire by a demonstrator wielding an improvised flamethrower after security forces violently detained and beat a protester. It’s unclear what happened to the officer, as the footage cuts away while other officers chase the demonstrators, who are fleeing on foot.

In the western city of Arzna, demonstrators appeared to set a fire outside a police station after security forces earlier opened fire on protesters. BBC Persian has identified at least three protesters killed in Azna by verifying footage of the funeral and speaking to family members.

The demonstrations began as a protest against the government’s mismanagement of the country’s struggling economy, which is increasingly struggling under the weight of international sanctions. Officials have also been accused of widespread corruption.

But demonstrations have taken on an anti-state tone in recent days, with protesters chanting slogans in many locations against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the clerical establishment that has ruled the country since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The verified video also showed slogans in support of Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the Shah of Iran, and the Pahlavi dynasty before the 1979 revolution.

On December 30, as dozens of demonstrators swarmed the gates of Tehran University, some chanted “Death to the dictator” – a reference to Khamenei.

In the Iranian city of Shahr in the coastal province of Sistan and Baluchestan, protesters burned effigies of Khamenei and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, leader of the 1979 revolution.

Holly Dagres, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute and curator of the Iranist Newsletter, said the government in Tehran has learned few lessons from the protests that raged across Iran for more than four months in 2022.

“While the catalysts are different… the problems remain the same: systemic mismanagement, corruption and repression,” she said. “Numerous anti-regime slogans make it clear that many Iranians are calling for the overthrow of the Islamic Republic.”

Despite their size, most experts interviewed by the BBC said they did not yet pose an existential threat to the country.

“The security forces are loyal – there are currently no defections and law enforcement forces are executing orders,” Azodi said.

“Furthermore, while protests are widespread, we do not see a clear strategy from protesters (or) attempts to overthrow the Islamic Republic.”

Reporting by Shayan Sardarizadeh, Ghoncheh Habibiazad, Matt Murphy, Farzad Seifikaran, Emma Pengelly, Sherie Ryder, Yi Ma, Christine Jeavans, Jess Carr and Paul Brown