On the third anniversary of 2022 uprising, which was triggered by the state murder of 22-year-old Mahsa (Jina) Amini, Iran witnessed protests and strikes in multiple cities. From the defiant cities of Kurdistan to the heart of the capital, Tehran, and across the nation’s vital oil fields and the streets of its provincial capitals, Iranians from all walks of life are rising up against the clerical regime’s tyranny and systemic corruption. The regime’s response—brutal violence, mass militarization, and overt intimidation—reveals not strength, but a profound and growing fear of its own people.
The Epicenter of Defiance: Kurdistan Under Siege
The regime set the stage for the anniversary with bloodshed. On September 15, the eve of the commemoration, plainclothes forces in the village of Pir Omran in Saqqez opened fire on residents protesting the destructive activities of a local gold mine. The assault was lethal: 22-year-old Mohammad Amin Rashidi was killed, and two others were wounded. In a display of extreme paranoia, security forces refused to release Mohammad’s body to his family and blocked the wounded from reaching hospitals.
The regime’s cruelty intensified after the killing. The Saqqez Governor and the local IRGC commander personally intervened, taking the victim’s father and grandfather to security centers to coerce the family into a clandestine, nighttime burial. By stealing their fundamental right to grieve and hold a proper funeral, the authorities exposed their terror of martyrs becoming symbols of resistance.
September 16—Saqqez, northwest Iran
On the third anniversary of the state-sponsored killing of Jina (Mahsa) Amini, the entire bazaar and shops of Saqqez, her hometown, were completely shut down. In a united general strike, merchants honored her memory and expressed their protest… pic.twitter.com/bTCEyqxRBD— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 16, 2025
On September 16, shopkeepers and merchants in Saqqez, the hometown of Mahsa Amini, and Divandarreh launched a massive general strike, bringing large sections of the cities’ markets to a standstill in a powerful act of civil disobedience. The regime’s reaction was to turn Saqqez into a military zone. The path to Mahsa Amini’s grave at the Aychi cemetery was completely blocked by a heavy deployment of IRGC troops. As military helicopters patrolled the skies, security forces patrolled the streets, suffocating the city in an atmosphere of occupation.
The Capital Rises: Tehran and Karaj Defy Repression
As night fell on September 16, the spirit of defiance ignited the streets of the nation’s capital. In Tehran’s Sadeghieh (Ariashahr) district, which emerged as a major flashpoint, spontaneous gatherings erupted with protesters chanting the signature slogan of the uprising: “Death to the dictator!” The protests took multiple forms, with citizens creating “protest traffic jams” to block security forces. As plainclothes agents moved in to attack demonstrators, the crowds confronted them with unified shouts of “Bisharaf, Bisharaf!” (Dishonorable!).
September 16—Tehran, Iran
People hold protest rallies on the third anniversary of the 2022 nationwide uprising and chant anti-regime slogans such as "Down with the dictator"#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/Dih5VLprXJ— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 16, 2025
The dissent echoed across the capital. In Tehranpars, residents took to the streets for nighttime protests, their chants of “Death to Khamenei, damn Khomeini” cutting through the darkness. In the northern Jordan district, the protest was carried from rooftops, as citizens voiced their opposition from the relative safety of their homes.
Just outside the capital, in the city of Karaj, one of the most poignant and symbolic acts of the anniversary took place. In Gohardasht, a lone woman climbed atop a large public trash receptacle, her voice ringing out with a message that captured the sentiment of millions: “You have turned Iran into a prison!”
The Echo of Protest: A Nation’s Cry for Rights and Livelihood
The political defiance in Kurdistan was mirrored by a groundswell of economic protests across the country, highlighting a populace pushed to the brink by the regime’s corruption and mismanagement.
The protests struck at the heart of Iran’s economy. Formal workers at the Aghajari Oil and Gas Production Company held sustained rallies, part of a continuing wave of action that has also hit the Pars Special Gas Complex and offshore platforms. Their demands are specific and targeted, calling for the elimination of restrictive salary caps, reforms to their pension fund, and the full implementation of “Article 10” of the state employment law, which governs their rights and compensation.
September 16—Aghajari, southwest Iran
Permanent workers of the Aghajari Oil and Gas Company held a protest over the regime’s continued disregard for their legal demands, including full payment of wages, removal of restrictions on retirement years, revision of the minimum wage for… pic.twitter.com/TrXysUXmie— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 16, 2025
Simultaneously, the pillars of Iranian society took to the streets. In Kermanshah, retired teachers held their seventh major protest rally, chanting, “Our pain is your pain, people join us!” One retired teacher gave a voice to the nation’s despair, stating, “We have become a collection of misfortunes and troubles: poverty, corruption, prostitution, unemployment, brain drain, land subsidence… I don’t know what’s left.”
The crisis has crippled even essential services. In Fars Province, family doctors gathered to protest four months of unpaid salaries, warning that the regime’s incompetence is threatening the collapse of the national healthcare system. These protests on September 16 were preceded by a day of widespread unrest on September 15, which saw protests by telecommunications retirees in five cities, medical residents in Tehran, and educators from the Literacy Movement demanding job security.
September 16—Kermanshah, western Iran
Retired educators in Kermanshah return to the streets again for their seventh rally in front of the Retirement Fund office, protesting low pensions and deteriorating living conditions.
The retirees shouted:
"Our pain is your pain, people join… pic.twitter.com/EBzjPMBKbe— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 16, 2025
The events of September 15 and 16 are not isolated incidents; they represent the dangerous convergence of raw political outrage over the regime’s brutality with the deep-seated economic despair caused by decades of institutionalized corruption. From the murder of a young man in Saqqez to the desperation of unpaid doctors in Fars, and the defiant chants of “Death to the dictator” in the streets of Tehran, a single narrative emerges: a regime that has failed its people on every front.
Faced with strikes, protests, and memorials, the leadership in Tehran has demonstrated that its only tools are bullets and intimidation. It cannot pay salaries, manage resources, or provide basic security, but it can deploy the IRGC to seal a cemetery and force a grieving family into silence. This reliance on brute force is the ultimate admission of illegitimacy.
The fight for a free, democratic, and prosperous Iran continues, fueled by the memory of its martyrs and the daily struggle for survival. The regime’s frantic suppression cannot extinguish this flame; it only proves that its foundations are crumbling under the weight of its own failures.