Live - Judiciary signals tougher stance as scattered rallies unfold in some cities

Summary

Overnight protests spread across several cities, with crowds chanting anti-clerical and monarchist slogans, while security forces remained deployed across cities on Wednesday and judicial officials warned of firm legal responses to unrest.
Protests spread across Iran for a third day, with universities and commercial districts emerging as key hubs amid a widening strike by shopkeepers in Tehran and other cities.
Security forces cracked down on demonstrations, with multiple arrests reported, students detained, and the use of live fire and tear gas in several locations. One student was severely injured in Tehran.
Protest slogans escalated beyond economic grievances, targeting clerical rule and the Supreme Leader, while some demonstrators called for regime change and a return to the Pahlavi era.
Officials acknowledged mounting public pressure, with the president calling for dialogue with protesters, while authorities ordered widespread provincial shutdowns citing cold weather and energy constraints.

Dec 31, 2025, 12:54 GMT

Water cannon vehicles deployed on Tehran’s Valiasr Street

Iranian security forces deployed water cannon vehicles on a central Tehran street on Wednesday, according to a video sent to Iran International.

Dec 31, 2025, 12:52 GMT

Mashhad university students call for protest, say campus is not a place for fear

Students at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad have called for a protest gathering on Wednesday, according to a statement published by the Amir Kabir Newsletter.

“We, the students of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, are heirs to the thought of freedom and resistance,” the statement said.

The authors said universities should remain spaces for political and social engagement.

“The university is not a place for fear, and students will not remain spectators,” the statement said.

It added: “Protest is our right, sit-ins are our tool, and standing firm is our path. The younger generation does not accept injustice and will not surrender the future at the cost of fear.”

Dec 31, 2025, 12:45 GMT

Fasa judiciary denies report of protester killed in governor’s office attack

A senior judicial official in Fasa on Wednesday denied reports that a person was killed during an attack on the city’s governor’s office, while confirming arrests and injuries after unrest in the southern Iranian city.

Hamed Ostovar, the head of Fasa’s justice department, said images circulating online showed damage to part of the governor’s office, including broken glass and the guard post door.

“During the incident and after police entered the area, four of the attackers were arrested,” he said.

He added that three police officers were injured.

Ostovar rejected reports that a protester was killed during the incident. “The claim is not true and is only a rumor,” he said.

Some sources reported that an 18-year-old, identified as Mahdi Samavati, was killed by security forces’ gunfire.

In recent hours, Iran International has received multiple videos that appear to show security forces firing directly toward protesters in the city.

Dec 31, 2025, 12:23 GMT

Tehran University says all detained students released

The University of Tehran said on Wednesday that all students detained during a protest on campus the previous day had been released.

Mohammad-Reza Taghidokht, executive deputy of the university president’s office, told ISNA that all detained students were freed by late Tuesday night following follow-up by the university’s president.

He said four students from the University of Tehran had been detained during the gathering.

Dec 31, 2025, 12:11 GMT

President frames unrest as result of external pressure, internal discord

President Masoud Pezeshkian framed Iran’s economic strains as the product of foreign pressure and internal division on Wednesday, calling for greater unity within the establishment as protests and strikes continued in multiple cities.

Speaking at a Central Bank general assembly meeting, Pezeshkian said the country faced “external pressure from the enemies of the country” and argued that internal disputes were worsening the situation.

“Unfortunately, inside the country, instead of synergy and support, some positions and actions cause weakening and harm.”

Dec 31, 2025, 11:52 GMT

Heavy security presence reported near Tehran’s Charsou mall

Security vehicles were deployed outside Tehran’s Charsou shopping complex on Wednesday as authorities maintained a heavy presence in central parts of the capital.

Footage sent to Iran International showed multiple security vehicles stationed near the Charsou complex, a major commercial and cultural hub close to central Tehran streets that have seen protest activity in recent days.

Dec 31, 2025, 11:35 GMT

Hardline daily says protests ‘not worth hearing'

The editor of Iran’s hardline Kayhan newspaper dismissed the ongoing protests on Wednesday, criticizing government remarks that described demonstrations as legitimate expressions of public pressure.

Hossein Shariatmadari, Kayhan’s editor-in-chief appointed by the Supreme Leader, wrote that the protests did not deserve to be heard, arguing they were driven by what he described as foreign-linked agitators rather than economic grievances.

He took aim at comments by government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani, who had said authorities recognize peaceful protests and should listen when people raise their voices under economic pressure.

Shariatmadari said that protest slogans did not reflect economic demands and alleged that demonstrators had expressed support for what he called “killers” of Iranian citizens, accusations frequently leveled by hardline media against dissent.

Dec 31, 2025, 11:31 GMT

Tehran bus drivers’ union backs protests

A Tehran bus workers’ union said on Wednesday it supports public protests, arguing that citizens have the right to demonstrate against economic pressure, repression and structural corruption.

In a statement, the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company said disadvantaged people are entitled to take to the streets in response to what it described as repressive policies and government actions that have harmed livelihoods.

“The deprived people have the right to protest against repressive policies, the state’s attack on public livelihoods, structural corruption and widening class gaps,” the union said.

Dec 31, 2025, 11:27 GMT

Protest gatherings held in Isfahan, Kermanshah on Wednesday

Protesters gathered in the cities of Isfahan and Kermanshah on Wednesday, according to videos received by Iran International, as demonstrations continued across multiple parts of Iran.

Footage from Isfahan showed groups of people assembling at Naqsh-e Jahan Square, one of the country’s most prominent public spaces and a recurring site of protest during periods of unrest.

Separately, video from the western city of Kermanshah showed demonstrators holding a protest and chanting “death to the dictator,” a slogan commonly used in protests critical of Iran’s leadership.

Dec 31, 2025, 09:32 GMT

Protesters gather outside governor’s office in Fasa

Residents of the southern city of Fasa in Fars province gathered in protest on Wednesday, according to reports received by Iran International, as demonstrations spread beyond major urban centers.

Witnesses said a group of citizens assembled outside the governor’s office in the city, which has a population of about 110,000.

Some protesters were heard chanting slogans critical of the Islamic Republic during the gathering.

Reports said security forces fired toward protesters in Fasa, though there was no immediate confirmation of injuries.

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