In late October 2025, a powerful wave of dissent is surging across Iran, exposing the deep fractures in a regime besieged by its own corruption and incompetence. From the strategic energy fields of the south to the nation’s universities, bakeries, and hospitals, a diverse cross-section of Iranian society is rising up. This is is a unified national uprising against a system that has failed its people on every front. The concurrent protests reveal a shared understanding among Iranians: the root of their suffering, whether economic or social, lies with the clerical regime itself.
The Engine of the Nation Grinds to a Halt
The nation’s economic lifelines are being choked by widespread labor strikes. On Tuesday, October 28, hundreds of contract workers at the vital South Pars gas complex, spanning refineries one through nine in Asaluyeh, Kangan, and Jam, walked off the job. Their five-point list of demands includes fair pay, an end to discriminatory employment practices, and a two-week-on, two-week-off work schedule to cope with the harsh conditions. The workers have warned that if their demands are not met by November 10, they will escalate their actions with family-inclusive protests.
October 29—Southwest Iran
Oil workers of Bahregan Oil Region held a sit-in, demanding fair wages, removal of pay caps for operational staff, correction of excess tax deductions.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/n9LoAPuX4H— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 29, 2025
This industrial action is mirrored across the country. In Mashhad, the providers of the nation’s daily bread took to the streets on Wednesday, October 29, to protest five months of unpaid wages. “We have repeatedly requested meetings with managers, but received no response,” one baker stated, highlighting how officials from the governor to the minister have ignored their plight.
In the south, steel industry pensioners in Khuzestan and Ahvaz held separate rallies on the same day, protesting the regime’s failure to implement pension harmonization and its illegal attempts to merge their pension fund, which they see as a threat to their life savings. Their chants of “Enough of this injustice!” echoed through the streets of Ahvaz.
October 29—Ahvaz, southwest Iran
Retirees of the Steel Pension Fund rallied outside the governor’s office, denouncing injustice and years of unfulfilled promises on pension equalization.
They opposed merging the fund with the national one and being denied veteran benefits.… pic.twitter.com/wXhwkv8XlV— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 29, 2025
Systemic Corruption Bleeds the People Dry
At the heart of Iran’s economic collapse is a web of systemic corruption that protects the well-connected while devastating ordinary citizens. The long-running “Unique Finance” pyramid scheme, which has defrauded over 20,000 victims, serves as a glaring example.
Protesters point out that despite judicial orders, domestic suspects continue their fraudulent activities, funneling illicit profits to their protectors within the system.
October 29—Tehran, Iran
Around 700 owners of long-delayed cooperative housing projects rallied outside parliament, demanding delivery of their homes after decades of neglect.
In past years, more than 300 applicants of homes have died without achieving their dream of owning a… pic.twitter.com/pvfTOqc0HB— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 29, 2025
This rot extends to basic necessities like housing. In Tehran, approximately 700 people who have waited decades for homes they paid for protested outside Parliament, chanting for the impeachment of the Minister of Roads. In a tragic testament to the regime’s failures, over 300 of these property owners have died without ever seeing their homes.
Meanwhile, in Fars province, poultry farmers protested on October 29 against a corrupt system where government-subsidized animal feed is diverted to the black market
A Regime at War with Its Own People
The regime’s contempt for its citizens is on full display, from university cafeterias to hospital wards. At Shiraz University, agriculture students staged a symbolic protest by placing their food trays on the ground to condemn the dangerously low quality of their meals.
This protest gains a chilling context amid reports that the Ministry of Agriculture imported a 100,000-kilogram shipment of contaminated meat from Mongolia—meat that had already been rejected by Iraq. Concerns are now rampant that this tainted product is being served in places with the least oversight, such as university and factory cafeterias.
October 28—Tabriz, northwest Iran
During the official Nurse’s Day ceremony, nurses raised protest placards demanding fair pay, permanent contracts, and respect for their rights. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/Ge8SewKjwA— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 29, 2025
On National Nurse’s Day, the regime’s hypocrisy was laid bare. While state-run ceremonies featuring the president were broadcast to create an image of appreciation, the reality was one of suppression. In Tabriz, a group of nurses held a silent protest during an official event, holding placards demanding fair pay and an end to the workforce shortage, only to be completely ignored by the officials present.
In Tehran, the main state ceremony was a carefully staged sham; nurses known for their activism were denied entry, while others face prosecution for speaking out. As the Secretary-General of the House of Nurses stated, “These celebrations are more theatrical than real… Several union activists… have been summoned to court or even dismissed from service merely for expressing professional criticism.”
Suppressing History, Fueling Resistance
Perhaps nothing better illustrates the regime’s position as a force occupying Iran than its actions on October 29, the day Iranians unofficially commemorate Cyrus the Great. Authorities launched a massive security operation to prevent citizens from gathering at his tomb in Pasargadae.
October 29—Fars province, southern Iran
Security forces block roads to Pasargadae on the Cyrus the Great Day, fearing the eruption of anti-regime protests.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/LLh8LYJV4Y— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 29, 2025
Eyewitness reports describe checkpoints every two kilometers on roads leading to the site, creating massive traffic jams as security forces interrogated travelers. In a move of profound disrespect, the regime blocked access for all Iranians while allowing foreign tourists to visit freely. As one citizen said, “We came to show respect for our history and national heritage, but we were met with restrictions and suppression.” This annual lockdown reveals a regime terrified of its own people’s history—a history that stands in stark contrast to its repressive ideology.
The events of late October 2025 are not disparate incidents but interconnected symptoms of a terminal illness within the clerical regime. From the unpaid baker in Mashhad to the striking worker in Asaluyeh, from the defrauded investor in Tehran to the history enthusiast barred from Pasargadae, the message is the same: the system is rotten to its core. The regime’s only response—whether to a demand for a paycheck, safe food, or the right to honor one’s heritage—is repression. This nationwide wave of protest is a political indictment of a bankrupt system, demonstrating the Iranian people’s unwavering demand is regime change and the establishment of a democratic republic that rejects all forms of dictatorship.