A provincial visit intended to project stability descended into chaos on Thursday, December 4, 2025, as Masoud Pezeshkian, the Iranian regime’s president, faced a furious reception in Yasuj, southwest Iran. While state media attempted to frame the visit as routine, footage from the ground showed citizens, students, and environmental activists besieging the government hall, chanting slogans against the administration’s destructive water policies. The confrontation in Yasuj coincided with escalating labor strikes in Khuzestan’s petrochemical sector and a sanitation crisis in Isfahan, underscoring the widening rift between the Iranian people and the ruling establishment.
Confrontation in Yasuj: “Are You Afraid of Us?”
As Pezeshkian arrived in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province on December 4, crowds gathered outside the venue of his meetings to protest the construction of the controversial “Mandegan” and “Khersan 3” dams. Locals argue these projects, aimed at transferring water to central provinces, will decimate the Dena forests, destroy villages, and force mass migration.
December 4—Yasuj, southwest Iran
Residents, students and environmental activists rallied outside the governor’s hall during regime president Masoud Pezeshkian’s visit, protesting illegal Mandegan and Khersan-3 dams that threaten their land and water. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/xVYdSF78Cg— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 4, 2025
The protests were led prominently by women in traditional Lur clothing. In one widely circulated exchange, a woman directly challenged the regime’s president, highlighting the contrast between his populist stunts elsewhere and his refusal to engage with the grievances of the periphery.
“Why did you ride a bicycle among the people in Isfahan, but today you refuse to come out and see the people of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad?” she shouted toward the building. “Because we have demands, are you afraid of us? Or are you ashamed? Or do we simply have no value?”
The crowd amplified her defiance, chanting, “Masoud, come out and answer the people,” and “Governor resign.” Placards held by demonstrators read, “Khersan and Mandegan mean the massacre of rivers and villages,” and “Victory of the Water Mafia over the Constitution.”
December 4—Yasuj, southwest Iran
Women and girls confronted regime president Masoud Pezeshkian’s visit, denouncing poor economic conditions, oppression, injustice and discrimination and refusing to stay silent any longer. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/PtMiyVnw2m— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 4, 2025
Double Standards and Environmental Hypocrisy
The unrest in Yasuj exposed a glaring contradiction in the administration’s rhetoric. During a meeting with economic activists on Thursday, Pezeshkian attempted to pacify concerns by claiming that “no decision will be made without expert backing” and that universities are still completing research on the dams. He asserted that no dam is built without environmental permits.
However, facts on the ground contradict these assurances. Less than a month prior, on November 10, Pezeshkian explicitly ordered the acceleration of the Koohrang 3, Khersan 3, and Mandegan dams to address water shortages in Isfahan and Yazd. Protesters noted that these orders were issued despite the projects lacking necessary environmental licenses.
Khuzestan: Families Join the Picket Line
Meanwhile in the southwest, a critical industrial strike intensified in the oil-rich province of Khuzestan. On December 3, the strike by day-laborers at the Amir Kabir Petrochemical Complex entered its seventh consecutive day.
In a significant escalation, the workers’ wives and children joined the protest lines outside the complex gates on Thursday. The workers are demanding the reinstatement of colleagues fired by CEO Ali Hayati. According to reports, management has begun terminating skilled workers—including master craftsmen with over three years of experience—who earn a maximum of 15 million Tomans (approximately $200 USD) per month and are denied insurance coverage.
December 3—Mahshahr, southwest Iran
For the 7th day, local day-rate workers at Amir Kabir Petrochemical and their families rallied at the main gate, protesting mass firings, lack of insurance and poverty wages. They demand reinstatement and full benefits.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/IIXGRYcLNT— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 4, 2025
The presence of families at the rally signals that the economic pressure has reached a breaking point, with workers vowing to continue the strike until the firings stop and insurance rights are granted.
Isfahan: A City Under Waste
Simultaneously, in Isfahan, a strike by sanitation workers has left District 5 buried under piles of uncollected garbage. The strike, which began on December 3, continued into Thursday as workers protested the non-payment of their wages for the Persian month of Aban (October 23–November 21).
December 4—Isfahan, central Iran
Municipal sanitation workers in District 5 are on strike over delayed wages, leaving streets buried in trash. They demand immediate payment of salaries and respect for their rights.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/tAgfqxywOI— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 4, 2025
Local sources report that streets and waste containers are overflowing, creating a severe health hazard for residents. The workers have stated they will not resume operations until their arrears are settled, highlighting the financial bankruptcy plaguing the regime’s municipalities.
Sistan and Baluchestan: The IRGC’s Border Mafia
Further east, in Sistan and Baluchestan, fuel porters (sookhtbars) released harrowing footage on Wednesday exposing extortion by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) at the Rutak border crossing in Mirjaveh.
According to the porters, the IRGC charges 16 million Tomans per vehicle for a “Razzaq” card to permit passage. However, despite collecting these exorbitant fees, the border remains closed, leaving hundreds of drivers stranded in freezing desert temperatures without food or water.
December 3—Routak, Mirjaveh, southeast Iran
Fuel porters protest IRGC border closure, 16m toman fees, deadly insecurity and nights of hunger and cold. They demand reopening the route, safety from bandits and an end to extortion. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/iwmw8fWbWr— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) December 4, 2025
“You take 16 million Tomans from every car, yet you keep us waiting in this severe cold? We have nothing to eat,” one porter said in a video addressed to the provincial governor.
The situation is deadly. Porters reported that on Monday, three vehicles came under fire; two overturned, and one was looted by bandits. “The fuel depot has been moved inside Pakistani territory where there are no facilities. We spend two or three nights there in hunger and cold,” a porter explained. They say the IRGC of deliberately blocking ordinary citizens to monopolize fuel smuggling through their own networks.
From the environmental outcries in Yasuj to the industrial strikes in Khuzestan and the plight of the Baluch fuel porters, December 4 marked a day of nationwide defiance. The regime’s inability to address basic needs—be it water management, fair wages, or border security—coupled with the visible corruption of its forces, has galvanized a population that is no longer willing to stay silent against the regime’s corruption and repression.