Iran: Fifth Day of Strikes by Tens of Thousands of Truck Drivers; Spread to 124 Cities Across 30 Provinces
Regime parliament members: The transportation fleet is collapsing; one day of drivers’ strikes causes trillions in damage.
Deputy Minister of Roads: A minority of drivers are trying to create tension, instigated by hostile foreign media.
The strike by tens of thousands of truck drivers across Iran has, on its fifth day, extended to 124 cities in 30 provinces. This is happening while the clerical regime and its repressive and suppressive apparatus are attempting to end the strike through threats, bribery, and various tactics.
The drivers are protesting against low freight rates, reductions in fuel quotas, crushing costs of parts and repairs, insurance premiums, unfair road tolls, job insecurity, and the lack of standardized tariffs. In some cases, they blocked roads.
In provinces such as Fars, Yazd, Isfahan, and Hormozgan, drivers who did not initially join the strike have since joined in the following days. In some areas, the regime’s repressive forces tried to crush the strike through threats, beatings, or empty promises, but they were met with the steadfastness of the truck drivers. Reports of arrests of some strikers have emerged from Kermanshah, Kerman, Fars, Kurdistan, and Bushehr.
As the strike continues, reports indicate disruptions in fruit and vegetable markets, decreased freight volume in logistics centers, and even fuel shortages at some stations, particularly in Markazi Province.
With the escalation of the truck drivers’ strike, regime parliament members expressed concern today. Mohammad Reza Rezaei, Chairman of the Parliament’s Construction Commission, warned about the consequences of the continued strike, stating: “If drivers strike even for a single day, the economic damage to the country amounts to trillions (of tomans)… The enemies of the country are lying in wait, and one of their targets is the driver community, as this sector plays a strategic role in the supply of fuel and goods.” (Ham Mihan – May 26, 2025)
Adel Najafzadeh, another member of parliament, emphasized: “The country’s transportation fleet is on the verge of collapse due to decades of neglect, lack of modernization, and absence of serious support for the hard-working driver community.” (Ham Mihan – May 26, 2025)
Reza Akbari, Deputy Minister of Roads, stated: “A small and limited group of drivers is attempting to create unrest, and these actions are the result of incitement by hostile foreign media aiming to portray the country’s roads as unsafe.” (ILNA – May 26, 2025)
Cities where truck drivers have gone on strike include: Tehran, Arak, Azna, Asadabad, Eslamabad-e Gharb, Isfahan, Izeh, Baft, Borujerd, Khorramabad, Dezful, Divandarreh, Rafsanjan, Zarand, Zanjan, Saveh, Sabzevar, Semnan, Sanandaj, Sirjan, Shabab, Shahr-e Kord, Shiraz, Abbasabad (Darreh Shahr), Fasa, Feyzabad, Qareh Bolagh, Qazvin, Qasr-e Shirin, Kazeroon, Kashmar, Kerman, Kermanshah, Kangavar, Golpayegan, Geno, Lahijan, Mahshahr, Marivan, Mashhad, Mahvelat, Mehriz, Najafabad, Neyshabur, Yazd, Ardabil, Asfarvarin, Aslan Duz, Aq Qala, Omidieh, Urmia, Ilam, Babol, Basmenj, Bojnourd, Borjestan, Bostanabad, Bandar Abbas, Boneh Kalaghi, Baharan, Baharestan, Bushehr (coastal), Tabriz, Torbat-e Jam, Jahrom, Chabahar, Khosravi, Khalil Shahr, Khomeini Shahr, Darab, Dorud, Dashtiari, Dehgolan, Dowlatabad, Robat Karim, Rumeshkan, Zabol, Sarbisheh, Sarpol-e Zahab, Salafchegan, Sumar, Shahroud, Shalamzar, Shamsabad, Shahrbabak, Salehabad, Sadra, Asaluyeh, Farsan, Fooladshahr, Qareh Papakh, Qazanchi, Qom, Karaj, Kahnuj, Kiar, Kiashahr-Shalamzar, Gahro, Gilan-e Gharb, Lanjan, Langarud, Marvdasht, Malayer, Mahabad, Mehran, Miyanshahr, Meybod, Naqadeh, Hamedan, Varamin, Yazdanshahr (Najafabad), and Younesi in Razavi Khorasan.
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, referring to the resonance of the truck drivers’ voices alongside the retirees of Ahvaz and Kermanshah, the farmers of Khuzestan, and the shoemakers of Tehran, said the hardworking truck drivers are declaring: “We can no longer continue; we are crushed, but we will not remain silent.” She added: “Uprising and resistance are the only paths to freedom from poverty, discrimination, unemployment, and systemic government corruption.”
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)
26 May 2025