Reuters is reporting that at least 17 protesters have been killed by police across the country since the unrest began, as a collapsing currency and an economy in free fall proved to be too much for the regime’s most loyal supporters. Small businesses and shopkeepers closed their stores when the Iranian rial lost half its value overnight. They began to march, calling for an end to the theocracy and a return of the shah.
On December 28, Iran’s young people joined the shopkeepers as Iran’s youth saw their future slipping away.
“Despite my mother’s fears, I joined in [on protests] on Wednesday. They execute, and arrest us anyway. So people now think, if they continue to kill us when we are not even on the streets in protest, why the f**k are we waiting for the right moment?” said Mehnaz, using a pseudonym for fear of arrest.
That’s the kind of attitude that drives people who feel they have nothing to lose into the streets.
“Joining these protests is a matter of ruining our future, but we have realised there is no future for us under this regime, so why cower and hide now?” said Reza, a 20-year-old university student.
“We are fed up, and after June we know we must hit them when they are weakest, which is now. They say you must hit the iron when it’s hot, right?” said Mehnaz.
Yes, but what are the protesters demonstrating against? Bad economy? Oppression? Corruption and mismanagement?
In 2022, a young Kurdish woman, Masah Amini, was arrested by the Basij, the country’s infamous “morality police,” for wearing her hijab improperly. She died in police custody, setting off massive protests, especially by women and girls who resented the regime’s oppression. The regime locked up 22,000 protesters and murdered 551 people.
This time, because of the efficiency of the police and intelligence apparatus, the protests are much smaller.
It is unclear if the protests could survive a violent crackdown such as the one in 2022. This time around, protests are smaller and lack a central figure such as Mahsa Amini to rally behind. Demands are more diffuse and grievances more economic in nature.
Still, the protesters on the streets say they are determined to stay there until they see real change. They say they have learned from the protests three years ago and are eager to apply the lessons.
“We learned that no matter what, the only way to get freedom is to continue protesting and doing so consistently and strategically, which I think lacked in the past,” said Moein, a 28-year-old protester in Lorestan speaking under a pseudonym. “We knew we wanted the end of the regime – and that’s been the common goal for all the protests.”
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei lashed out at the protesters with uncharacteristic anger and venom.
“Protest is legitimate, but protest is different from rioting.” He warned that “officials should speak with protesters. Speaking with a rioter is pointless. Rioters must be put in their place.”
Pay no attention to the demonstrators, says Khamenei. They are puppets of people who are really pulling the strings.
“A bunch of people incited or hired by the enemy are getting behind the tradesmen and shopkeepers and chanting slogans against Islam, Iran and the Islamic Republic,” he said. “This is what matters most.”
The protests, while large and national, aren’t what’s most concerning to the leadership. Recent events in Venezuela and the uncertainty over what Trump might do if the demonstrations continue are what’s really scaring the mullahs.
Trump’s promise to the protesters to intervene if government forces open fire on them is being taken very seriously after what happened to Maduro.
“It confirms that Trump is unpredictable and truly everything is on the table vis a vis Iran,” said Sanam Vakil, director of the London-based Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House.
Maduro’s capture will now force the Iranian regime to weigh more heavily the possibility that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei could be forcibly removed, said Roozbeh Aliabadi, an Iranian consultant at geopolitical advisory firm Global Growth Advisors.“Maduro’s capture is a game changer for Iran,” he said. “It opens up possibilities that didn’t exist in Iran before.”
Israel praised Maduro’s removal and said it stood with the people of Venezuela.
The move to arrest Maduro has few precedents in American foreign policy. Washington captured Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega in 1990 on drug charges. The U.S. helped topple Iraq’s Saddam Hussein and Libya’s Moammar Gadhafi, but both dictators were ultimately killed by their own people.
It’s not clear how exactly Trump would “protect” the protesters. That sort of ambiguity suits Trump just fine. Keeping the Iranian government off balance and questioning their actions is almost as good as an invasion.
Nevertheless, Trump’s words of support have emboldened the Iranians and sent thousands into the streets.
After President @realDonaldTrump clear and forceful support for Iranian protesters, large numbers of people have returned to the streets of Tehran and other cities. Words matter. Never before have we seen a United States president take such decisive steps to confront the… pic.twitter.com/dV0sMjv9zH
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) January 2, 2026
Iranians haven’t called for assistance, except on the diplomatic front and are pleading with Elon Musk to provide more Starlink access so the regime cannot silence the streets by cutting the web.
President @realDonaldTrump thank you for your strong support for Iranian protesters. Your words matter.
Since you are serious about standing with the Iranian people, there are three immediate steps you can take:First: ensure free internet access.
Tell @elonmusk to provide more… pic.twitter.com/BiaQODkbCN— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) January 2, 2026
The protests are likely to end with many Iranians dead and the regime even weaker than it was before they started. But unless or until widespread defections from the security apparatus, including the Revolutionary Guards, the police, the volunteer cadres who are regime loyalists, and the military, the deaths of the protesters will be for nothing.
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