Tipsheet

What the Hell Is Going on in Iran?

Matt Vespa
Matt Vespa  |  January 02, 2026 6:55 AM

Iran is blowing up, or at least that’s what social media suggests. With the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps knee-capped before the execution of Operation Midnight Hammer, which cripped its nuclear weapons program, last summer, and a degrading economy, the people have taken to the streets. There are reports of local IRGC headquarters being stormed, local police stations being overrun, and the masses taken to the streets to demand the end of the Islamic Republic (via Fox News): 

Protests in Iran entered a fifth consecutive day on Thursday, with demonstrations and clashes reported across Tehran and multiple provincial cities as authorities, state-linked media and rights groups cited additional deaths overnight.

According to Reuters, several people have been killed since the unrest escalated, based on reports from Iranian media and human rights groups. Iranian authorities have confirmed at least one death. Iran International said that seven protesters were killed by security forces, making Thursday the deadliest day of the protests so far. 

Opposition group National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) told Fox News Digital in a statement that protests and street clashes continued Thursday morning in Tehran and in cities including Marvdasht, Kermanshah, Delfan and Arak, and claimed that two protesters were killed by direct fire in Lordegan. Fox News Digital could not independently verify the deaths. 

The protests began on Sunday after shopkeepers and merchants demonstrated against soaring inflation, unemployment and the sharp depreciation of Iran’s currency. The unrest quickly spread beyond bazaars to include students and wider public demonstrations in cities across the country.

[…] 

President Donald Trump and other administration officials voiced support for the demonstrators this week. Speaking Monday, Trump pointed to Iran’s economic collapse and long-standing public discontent, while stopping short of explicitly calling for regime change. 

Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, issued a statement on the continuing protests, noting: "The four-day uprising by merchants, students, and other sectors of society signals the Iranian people’s determination to be free from religious tyranny. This wretched regime is doomed to be overthrown by the risen populace and rebellious youth. The final word is spoken in the streets by the people and the rebellious youth, those with nothing left to lose. This regime must go." 

Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince and son of the late Shan Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, issued this statement on New Year’s Eve: 

As the world welcomes the New Year, the dawn of a new era in Iran is upon us. My brave compatriots are on the streets in cities and towns across our country—fighting for their freedom, risking their lives. The current regime has reached the end of the road. It stands at its most fragile: weak, deeply divided, and unable to suppress the courage of a rising nation. The growing protests show this year will be the definitive moment for change. 

To the international community: I call upon you to stand with the people of Iran not only in word but in action. Peace in the Middle East and stability across the world depend on a free Iran. Unlike the 46 years of chaos and terror this regime has brought, the new, democratic Iran I seek to forge will usher in an era of prosperity and security. 

The tide of history is turning. I invite you not only to witness the birth of a new Iran, but to stand by our side as we achieve it and to work with us to build a legacy of lasting peace. 

Happy New Year, everyone—Iran could be imploding