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The Iranian regime’s Assembly of Experts, the clerical body responsible for selecting and overseeing the supreme leader, issued a sweeping statement Thursday calling for reconsideration of the country’s nuclear commitments, stronger enforcement of compulsory hijab and centralized wartime economic management. The statement reflects the ruling establishment’s attempt to escalate pressure on its adversaries and force concessions through nuclear threats, even as the regime faces deepening economic crises and mounting public discontent at home.
Assembly of Experts Demands Nuclear Shift
In its November 12 statement, the Assembly of Experts declared that examining withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and revising Iran’s defense doctrine had become an unavoidable necessity. It portrayed these steps as a “national demand.”
The Assembly also urged authorities to intensify action against perceived violations of compulsory hijab, describing challenges to official religious norms as threats to the country’s ideological foundations. It called for a wartime economic headquarters operating under the supreme leader’s supervision.
The intervention exposes the priorities of the clerical establishment at a time of severe domestic strain: more centralized control over economic policy, continued enforcement of religious restrictions and a potentially far-reaching change in nuclear policy. A separate domestic political assessment acknowledged divisions over leaving the NPT, with critics warning that withdrawal could increase Iran’s political and security costs.
Iran faces deepening factional infighting over intelligence appointments and political prosecutions, reported killings of Baluch civilians, #protests in Shahroud and flood damage cutting off villages. Meanwhile, food prices and water shortages strain households as the regime…
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) November 7, 2026
Medicine Prices Threaten Patients’ Access to Treatment
A state-affiliated activist Ehsan Sohrabi warned on November 12 that soaring medical costs were forcing working-class families to choose between essential living expenses and continuing treatment.
Speaking to Rokna, he reported increases of up to 500% for some imported medicines and approximately 150% for domestically produced drugs. Patients with cancer and other serious illnesses are especially vulnerable, he said, because chemotherapy, radiotherapy, diagnostic tests and medicines not fully covered by insurance impose additional costs.
“Human life should not depend on financial means, and bread should not become a luxury,” Sohrabi declared.
The soaring cost of medicine is adding to public anger as families struggle to afford even essential treatment. With basic necessities increasingly beyond reach, the regime faces the risk of a population growing exhausted by relentless hardship and increasingly unwilling to tolerate the authorities’ failure to address it.
Iran’s retirees protest across multiple cities, denouncing #corruption, poverty and executions. Yazd’s bus strike enters its ninth day, floods disrupt 19 provinces, and new figures reveal over 10,000 road deaths in six months. With wages trailing #inflation and hospitals…
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) November 8, 2026
Students Protest Poor Food at Tehran University Dormitory
Students at the Salamat dormitory of Allameh Tabataba’i University in Tehran protested on November 12 against poor-quality meals and repeated discrepancies between food supplied and advertised menus.
According to reports, students opened the low-quality sandwiches distributed to residents in the dormitory courtyard to demonstrate their complaints.
The incident follows earlier student accounts published by Shargh describing shrinking meal portions, rising accommodation costs and reduced university welfare provisions. Students at several Tehran universities have complained that basic living expenses increasingly interfere with their studies.
Three Baluch civilians reportedly killed by security forces near Zahedan. Parliament moves to restructure the Intelligence Ministry. Steelworkers demand overdue wages, and floods damage 30 bridges. A regime confronting persistent domestic pressures.
By @shahriarkia #IranNews…— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) November 12, 2026
Authorities Clash Over Safety of Cheaper Detergents
A new dispute between Tehran municipal authorities and the provincial standards regulator has exposed tensions over the affordability and safety of household essentials.
According to Bultan News, Tehran municipality plans to expand bulk detergent sales to 22 municipal markets by year-end, offering products at prices reportedly 30–70% below packaged equivalents.
Municipal market director Mehdi Bakhtiarizadeh insisted the products came from licensed factories and met quality requirements.
However, Tehran’s Standards Office has warned against buying unpackaged detergents, citing difficulties tracing manufacturers, production dates and potential allergens. Industry representatives have meanwhile reported sharp increases in petrochemical raw-material costs.
The conflicting official positions leave consumers facing a difficult choice between cheaper household necessities and products whose safety the regulator disputes.
Iran’s Newspapers Describe a Country Running Out of Economic and Social Marginhttps://t.co/zD3bucGDiC
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) November 9, 2026
Economic Pressures Deepen Ahead of Winter
Recent official disclosures add context to the day’s warnings about household hardship.
On November 10, energy official Mirzaei acknowledged that Iran faced a winter gas crisis requiring coordination among economic ministries and security institutions.
In November 9 remarks, MP Hossein Samsami presented figures showing sharp price increases over ten months: imported rice rose 115%, red meat 104%, milk 112% and 900-gram cooking oil 332%. He said the oil price had risen from 92,000 to 404,000 tomans.
The figures illustrate why limited subsidies and nominal wage increases are rapidly losing their value. The authorities face a winter in which the cost of food, treatment and energy insecurity may compound existing pressure on households.
The Assembly of Experts’ intervention reveals a leadership increasingly inclined to answer insecurity with greater centralization and crackdown. Its calls for stricter hijab controls and a stronger command structure suggest that preserving obedience remains central to the regime’s response, even as the institutions responsible for basic public welfare struggle to meet everyday needs.
This approach carries a political risk. The wider the gap between official demands for sacrifice and the population’s deteriorating living conditions, the harder it becomes to sustain consent through appeals to loyalty. The regime may seek to strengthen its authority by tightening control, but such measures cannot resolve the economic and social grievances that continue to undermine it.