These latest protests in Iran build on nearly a decade of recurring unrest driven by economic collapse, anger over political repression and a growing rejection of the Islamic Republic's social controls, especially compulsory hijab rules.

Demonstrations that began on December 28 over currency freefall and fuel prices have tapped into grievances that surfaced in earlier protest waves in 2017-2019 and during the 2022 Mahsa Amini movement.

The immediate trigger for the current unrest was a sharp slide in the rial and a rise in subsidised petrol prices in early December, which pushed up the cost of food and daily necessities for already strained households.

Bazaar traders in central Tehran staged walkouts as the rial hit record lows against the US dollar, and protests quickly spread from the capital's major markets to other cities.

Years of US sanctions, state mismanagement and corruption have eroded living standards, with inflation around 40% and unemployment high among the young, turning economic complaints into broader calls for political change.

Recent protests echo and sharpen themes seen since the late 2010s, when working-class demonstrations over rising prices in 2017-2019 gradually evolved into openly anti-regime rallies.

Chants such as "Death to the dictator" and slogans criticising spending on regional proxies instead of domestic needs have become recurring features, signalling what researchers describe as a secular shift in public sentiment even in smaller towns.

The September 2022 death of Mahsa Amini in morality police custody over alleged hijab violations then turned hijab defiance into a symbol of resistance to the entire system, with women and young people playing a prominent role in protests across all provinces.

The new wave since late 2025 has also been shaped by Iran's regional confrontation and security climate, including the costly conflict with Israel and the risk of wider war. Many protesters link economic hardship to foreign policy, arguing that resources devoted to military and proxy activities abroad should instead address domestic shortages, blackouts and deteriorating public services.

Disillusionment has extended to President Masoud Pezeshkian, elected in 2024 on pledges of better governance and looser internet restrictions, but now criticised by some demonstrators for failing to prevent power cuts and for presiding over a harsher security environment.

Monarchist slogans and public references to exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi have become more visible, marking an ideological shift since earlier economic protests.

Pahlavi has used social media and foreign platforms to call for coordinated nationwide protests and present himself as a potential transitional figure, a message that has resonated with segments of the bazaar and urban middle class frustrated with both hardliners and reformists.

Historical parallels with the 1979 revolution, when bazaar merchants helped mobilise against the monarchy, are frequently cited in coverage of current strikes in Tehran's Grand Bazaar and other commercial hubs.

State response has followed a familiar pattern: use of security forces and Revolutionary Guard units to suppress demonstrations, combined with extensive internet shutdowns and restrictions on mobile and fixed-line communications.

Rights groups report rising arrest numbers and an execution rate that has doubled since 2022, arguing that capital punishment is being used to deter protest activity and silence dissent.