Maryam Rajavi: Khamenei and Pezeshkian have cunningly taken the second step in raising gasoline prices. They think a step-by-step increase will protect them from an uprising. The thieving and plundering rulers are immersed in a super-luxurious life, but the people’s tables are getting emptier every day!
According to a directive by Pezeshkian and his government, starting from December 6, the price of gasoline using an “emergency station card” will increase to 5,000 tomans. The directive states that the first and second tier quotas will ostensibly continue at 1,500 and 3,000 tomans, respectively. However, a closer look at the text reveals that the price of readily available gasoline will effectively rise to 5,000 tomans. While the first article of the directive attempts to conceal this reality by stating that the 1,500 and 3,000 toman quotas remain in effect, subsequent articles and numerous exceptions show that the true goal is to raise gasoline prices and empty the people’s pockets.
Article 3 of the directive specifies that ‘from the second half of Azar 1404 (December 6, 2025), the first and second tier gasoline quotas for vehicles with government license plates (except for ambulances), vehicles in free trade and special economic zones, imported foreign vehicles, and new domestic vehicles will be eliminated. A monthly quota equivalent to the sum of the first and second tier quotas will be allocated to these vehicles at the rate specified in section 2 of this directive (5,000 tomans per liter).’
On November 26, the state-run newspaper Ettela’at exposed the regime’s ringleaders’ fear of another uprising over the gasoline price hike, writing: ‘The experience of fuel policy-making in 2017 and 2019 has shown that rising gasoline prices may lead to widespread protests by the people. Although the government is aware of this and has implemented the recent price increase with caution, it is unlikely that the large-scale events of 2019 will be repeated. However, the long-term effects on poverty and economic pressure on the people can lay the groundwork for discontent, and should other sparks ignite, the potential for similar crises exists… Financial mismanagement and budget deficits have prevented the government from implementing suitable alternative options for managing fuel prices. Any action, whether a price increase or an alternative policy, has economic and social consequences. The regime is caught in a cycle where every decision creates worrying repercussions, and managing this issue requires intelligent and comprehensive policymaking.’
In another panicked reaction, regime parliament member Rashidi said: ‘Gentlemen of the government! The people truly do not know what to do with you anymore. You sit in your glass rooms, unaware of the real situation of the nation. The people’s livelihood is not in good condition; they are worried and upset… The very important issue of gasoline; the decision you have made about gasoline is completely wrong. You have given people cars that consume 114 and 115 liters, and now you want to increase the price of gasoline too? What kind of policy is this? You are putting pressure on the people, fining them, and asking them to live with shortages. Let the people use modern cars from around the world.’ (IRNA News Agency Telegram – November 26, 2025).
Another state-run newspaper wrote: ‘The destructive effects of the energy imbalance stem from the government’s budget deficit; a budget that has no connection to the people, and the corrupt ruling management has burdened society with it… Energy is controlled by the power mafia, and the current gasoline situation is the result of their policies’ (Jahan-e Sanat – November 22). On the same day, the newspaper Tose-e Iran wrote: ‘The money from gasoline does not go to the treasury but into the pockets of a small minority present in the power structure… A hidden government controls the main network of gasoline exports… The profit from gasoline does not go to the public treasury and only flows into the pockets of a limited minority.’
On November 22, the newspaper Setareh Sobh admitted: ‘Fuel prices in Iran are dictated by decree; the fuel problem exists in all countries, but in Iran, due to political decision-making and structural corruption, the consequences are heavier for the people.’ It also expressed concern: ‘The gradual increase in fuel prices is intended to contain social repercussions, but the memory of November 2019 is still vivid, and any new wave of price hikes could pave the way for fresh protests’ (Setareh Sobh – November 22, 2025).
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, said: As expected, Khamenei and his president have once again maneuvered their way into raising gasoline prices. The price of readily available fuel has now jumped to 5,000 tomans. With this state-run swindle, the pockets and dinner tables of an already exhausted public are being emptied even further. Soaring costs will inevitably ripple through other sectors as well, piling even more pressure on ordinary people, especially workers and the most vulnerable.
Regarding the gradual increase in gasoline prices, Mrs. Rajavi said three days ago: “The regime’s ringleaders think that a step-by-step increase in gasoline prices will protect them from protest and uprising. But everyone knows that this is a prelude to further increases that will affect people’s lives. The thieving and plundering rulers are immersed in a super-luxurious life, but the tables of the deprived people are getting emptier every day.”
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)
26 November 2025