"In 2025, Israel launched a 12-day attack on Iran, assassinating senior military leaders and targeting military and economic infrastructure. The assault was followed by US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz. As the year closed, protests erupted in the capital, Tehran, and in cities across central and southwestern Iran, beginning in the final week of 2025 and continuing into the first days of 2026."
"These protests were not unprecedented. Iranian society has witnessed thousands of demonstrations since the mid-1990s, varying in scale and levels of participation. Over the years, the drivers of these demonstrations have differed, ranging from restrictions on social and political freedoms to the deterioration of economic conditions. In Iran, recurring protests are shaped by the interaction between domestic politics, governance, foreign policy, and the impact of sanctions, which together influence both the emergence of dissent and the state's response to it, particularly amid sustained sanctions."
New Year demonstrations in Iran followed a year marked by war, economic strain, and political uncertainty. Regional attacks in 2025 included a 12-day Israeli assault that targeted military and economic infrastructure and US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. Protests began in late 2025 and continued into early 2026 across Tehran and other cities. Recurring demonstrations since the mid-1990s have varied in scale and causes, including restrictions on freedoms and worsening economic conditions. Recent protests followed a merchants’ strike over collapsing purchasing power, driven by rising inflation, a roughly 50 percent fall in the rial, and higher unemployment.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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