A new surge of protests and labor strikes continues to shake Iran, reflecting mounting anger over unpaid wages, collapsing living standards, and pervasive corruption under the clerical regime. From the oil fields of Behregan and the sugarcane fields of Haft Tappeh to hospitals, schools, and ports, workers and citizens are demanding justice, fair pay, and dignity.
October 22 – Nationwide Labor Unrest and Oil Workers’ March in Behregan
Oil workers in the Behregan region continued their protest sit-in and march from 7 to 9 a.m., demanding the restoration of their legal rights. In a statement, they condemned salary caps and discriminatory pay structures, questioning why “executive staff and managers receive special bonuses while those working in the harshest conditions face limits and unfair classifications.”
Their demands include:
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Correction of minimum salaries
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Elimination of wage caps for field workers
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Removal of retirement benefit limits
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Refund of excess taxes
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Full implementation of Article 10 and back pay
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Independence of the Oil Pension Fund
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Abolition of unfair job categorization
Workers pledged to continue their protest until all legal rights are restored.
Meanwhile, in Khuzestan Province, the Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company once again became the epicenter of labor resistance. Workers launched a strike over the “humiliatingly low” food allowance, chanting “Shame on you! Leave Haft Tappeh alone!” and marching inside the factory complex. Labor representatives said the allowance “doesn’t even cover one simple meal.” Workers vowed to continue the strike and called on colleagues from other departments to join.
One protester told local media: “We have toiled in heat and dust for years, yet we still have to shout for our most basic right — food.”
October 21—Tehran, Iran
Students at Khajeh Nasir University continue their protests, demanding safe dorms for women, affordable quality food, and an end to security crackdowns.
They declare: “The student’s voice will never be silenced.”#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/aELN2deW77— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 21, 2025
October 21 – Expanding Social and Labor Protests
Across Iran, the final days of October saw widespread protests and strikes amid worsening inflation and repression:
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Mashhad: Municipal transport drivers held a strike over unpaid wages and low salaries.
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Tehran: Pegah Dairy Factory workers stopped work, demanding long-overdue payments.
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Chabahar: Municipal workers protested five months of unpaid insurance and wages.
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Ahvaz: Staff at Masih Daneshvari Hospital went on strike after seven months without incentive pay.
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Retired oil workers gathered in protest; one elderly participant fainted due to stress.
#Breaking #Iran News Alert
In the early hours of October 21, @Mojahedineng's Resistance Units held a motorcycle and car parade in Tehran, waving flags to mark the anniversary of Mrs. Maryam Rajavi’s election as NCRI President-elect on October 23, 1993.
The bold display signaled… https://t.co/pJDGSjXSwo pic.twitter.com/mOPk8TYhzM— SIMAY AZADI TV (@en_simayazadi) October 21, 2025
October 20 – Nationwide Protests Against Corruption and Land Confiscation
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In Qazvin, residents protested the confiscation of over 300 hectares of private land by local authorities, vowing, “We won’t leave until our rights are restored.”
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Teachers in Yazd demanded the recovery of their plundered savings fund and an end to the looting of teachers’ assets.
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Residents of Abshourk and Bandar Abbas demonstrated over two decades of deprivation from basic urban services.
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Investors defrauded in the Abbaszadeh complex (Ilam) and the Almas Qeshm project rallied for justice against politically connected profiteers.
University Protests and the Youth Movement
Students at Khajeh Nasir University in Tehran continued their sit-in against privatization, poor-quality meals, and campus repression. Their declaration, titled “The University Will Not Be Silent,” emphasized the right to freedom, justice, and dissent.
October 21—Garmdareh, Alborz Province
Angry citizens rallied after the Tehran–Karaj metro outage, chanting slogans against the regime and its leader.
“Down with Khamenei!” echoed through the station.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/sc39Kew4Wx— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 21, 2025
Escalating Economic Collapse
Iran’s poverty line is now estimated at 35 to 50 million tomans per month, while the official minimum wage stands at just 10 million tomans, leaving most families below subsistence level. The national currency has lost over 110 times its value—a 50,000-toman note once worth $100 now buys less than $1. Meanwhile, the government has raised mobile and SMS tariffs, deepening the financial strain on ordinary citizens.
Severe economic disarray has disrupted daily life:
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Banking systems and mobile payment apps suffered repeated outages.
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Power generation at the Zayandeh Rud dam halted due to depleted reservoirs.
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Tehran’s Metro Lines 4 and 5 faced major breakdowns, leading to anti-regime chants by stranded passengers.
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Radar system failures at Ahvaz Airport grounded flights.
October 21—Yazd, Iran
Active and retired teachers gathered to demand real ownership and transparent management of the Teachers’ Reserve Fund, condemning state-appointed managers and corruption.
“Stop looting teachers’ assets!” they chanted.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/W8LmqrZMLP— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 21, 2025
Growing Social Collapse
Over 928,000 children are now out of school — mostly from impoverished working families. Stark inequality in education persists, with “luxury preschools in north Tehran” contrasted with “children in Sistan and Baluchestan Province learning on bare ground.”
Meanwhile, inflation, unemployment, and deprivation have become inseparable from daily life in Iran, where citizens lament: “In a country with the world’s second-largest gas reserves, people survive on debt and installments.”
October 20 – Rising Repression and Public Resistance
The 91st week of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign was marked in 52 prisons nationwide. Inmates and families of death-row prisoners held protests, including outside Ghezel Hesar Prison, chanting “No to execution.”
Reports also emerged of continuing house demolitions targeting Baluchi citizens in Zahedan and violent clashes in Varzeqan, East Azerbaijan, where villagers protesting land seizures for Russian-operated gold mines were attacked by special forces using batons and pellet guns, injuring several.
From oil fields and factories to classrooms and prisons, the October protests reveal a society on the edge — exhausted by economic decay and repression yet united in defiance. As one worker in Haft Tappeh declared, “We may be hungry, but we’re not silent anymore.”