On September 29, 2025, a tidal wave of protests swept across Iran, revealing the profound depth of a nation’s fury against the clerical regime’s corruption and incompetence. From the industrial heartlands of Ahvaz to the university dormitories of Tehran, and across dozens of cities, steelworkers, retirees, farmers, bakers, and students took to the streets, their voices united in a single roar of defiance.
The Industrial Heartland Revolts: Ahvaz Steelworkers Lead the Charge
In the southern city of Ahvaz, workers from the National Industrial Steel Group led one of the day’s most significant actions. After weeks of protests inside their factory complex went unanswered, they took their struggle to the streets, holding a massive rally in front of the Khuzestan provincial governor’s office. Their procession then moved through the city center, shaking the Ahvaz bazaar as they marched towards the offices of Bank-e Melli (National Bank).
More footage of INSIG workers in Ahvaz. Protesters chant:
"Workers will die but won't accept humiliation"#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/UrypKYcsNr— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 29, 2025
Their chants cut directly to the heart of the regime’s hypocrisy and systemic corruption. Cries of “Hussein, Hussein, is their slogan; lies and theft, their work!” echoed through the streets, a damning indictment of a leadership that cloaks its plunder in religious piety. This was not merely a labor dispute over two months of unpaid wages and production lines deliberately idled by mismanagement; it was a political rebellion, underscored by the defiant slogan, “The worker will die but not accept humiliation!”
A Nationwide Uprising of Retirees: Targeting the Regime’s Power Core
Simultaneously, a coordinated movement of telecommunications retirees materialized in dozens of cities, including Tehran, Isfahan, Kermanshah, Tabriz, Sanandaj, Ahvaz, and Hamedan. This was a direct challenge to the financial empires controlled by the regime’s elite. Protesters explicitly named the IRGC Cooperative Foundation (Bonyad Taavon Sepah) and the Executive Headquarters of Imam’s Directive (Setad Ejraiye Farman Imam)—quasi-state institutions known for plundering national wealth under the supreme leader’s authority.
September 29—Kermanshah, western Iran
Retirees of Telecommunications Company of Iran (TCI) protest injustice and mismanagement by regime-linked institutions blocking their benefits.
Chants: “The Execution of Imam’s Order HQ has hijacked TCI & stolen our rights!”#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/jIKal4G687— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 29, 2025
Their slogans demonstrated a complete loss of faith in all branches of the state. In Isfahan, retirees chanted, “Neither parliament, nor the government, cares for the nation!” In Shush, retirees from the Social Security Organization echoed this sentiment, adding, “The state broadcaster is a disgrace!”—a clear rejection of state propaganda.
In a powerful speech at the Tehran protest, one retiree directly addressed the authorities: “Do you not have seeing eyes and hearing ears? You see these videos, but you do nothing… Neither parliament, nor the government, nor the judiciary… cares for us or the nation.”
The Crisis of Basic Needs: No Bread, No Water
The regime’s failure to provide the most fundamental necessities fueled further outrage. In Isfahan and Mashhad, bakers protested outside provincial government buildings, warning that the production of bread itself is at risk. Their core grievance is the government’s failure to pay essential subsidies. In Mashhad, bakers reported that payments from Bank Sepah are over 100 days overdue. Their slogan captured the national mood: “Empty promises are enough, our tables are empty!”
September 29—Isfahan, central Iran
Bakery workers rally outside the governor’s office, protesting delayed and missing subsidies that push their shops toward collapse. Similar protests have been happening in recent weeks.
They chanted: “Subsidies never came, shutters down!”… pic.twitter.com/ptjq0eoz7m— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 29, 2025
Meanwhile, in agricultural Khuzestan, farmers gathered to protest catastrophic water shortages. One farmer vividly described their plight, accusing officials of treating them like a “football kicked between indifferent government bodies.” He exclaimed, “What kind of management is this that in Mehr (September 23—October 22), at the start of the planting season, there is still no plan? If you cannot end this incompetence, resign!”
A Society Unraveling at the Seams
The protests revealed a society where every pillar is crumbling. At the Danesh dormitory of Khajeh Nasir University in Tehran, students held a nighttime rally against soaring tuition fees and abysmal living conditions, vowing to continue their protests until authorities respond to their demands.
More footage and pictures at the Danesh dormitory of Khajeh Nasir University.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/SRyHDlL2gB
— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 29, 2025
In Nishabur, firefighters were forced to protest on their own national day of recognition. They spoke out against dangerously low wages, blocked overtime pay, the appointment of unqualified individuals to operational roles, and the “humiliating” pittance they received as a bonus.
In Mashhad, the desperation of small business owners was laid bare as drivers of decommissioned vans protested. Their vehicles have been left “rotting in a parking lot for three years” while awaiting a government replacement plan. With their warranties and insurance long expired, one driver asked, “How are our families supposed to live when we have no income?”
A Regime Facing a Unified People
The events of September 29 were a powerful demonstration of a nation at its breaking point. The slogans have evolved far beyond simple economic demands; they are now direct political condemnations of the IRGC, the supreme leader’s financial networks, state media, and the entire government apparatus. The unity is unmistakable—the same cries of defiance and slogans rejecting the regime’s legitimacy echo from different groups in different cities.
The scale, coordination, and fury of these protests signal that the regime’s long-standing strategy of ignoring and suppressing dissent is no longer tenable. The Iranian people are showing they have lost their fear and are increasingly united in identifying the corrupt clerical leadership as the fundamental source of their suffering.