On September 30, 2025, a wave of protests swept across Iran, revealing the deep-seated anger of the Iranian people against the ruling theocracy. From teachers in Tehran and healthcare workers in Tabriz to bakers in Mashhad and oil workers in Ahvaz, citizens from all walks of life took to the streets, united by a common struggle against corruption, economic hardship, and systemic injustice. These are symptoms of a collapsing state, proving the regime’s complete failure to govern and its growing illegitimacy in the eyes of its people.
Public Services in Crisis: The Betrayal of Iran’s Educators and Healers
The regime’s hollowing out of public services was on full display in the nation’s capital. In Tehran, teachers and job applicants for the Ministry of Education held massive rallies, protesting a corrupt and discriminatory hiring process that makes a mockery of merit. The regime had promised 30,000 teaching positions but only provided 11,000 slots. Even then, applicants with high scores were rejected in favor of candidates with preferential status for being married or already employed, rendering their efforts meaningless. The protesters’ slogans conveyed a profound sense of betrayal: “We saw no justice, only heard lies!” One demonstrator carried a sign with a message of utter despair: “My shroud is the document of the end of hope in education.”
This crisis is not confined to education. In Tabriz, healthcare workers at the University of Medical Sciences gathered to protest months of unpaid benefits, the non-implementation of official Ministry of Health regulations, and widespread discrimination in bonus payments between administrative and frontline staff. Their demonstration highlighted the regime’s neglect of the very people tasked with safeguarding the nation’s health.
September 30—Tehran, Iran
Teachers rallied outside the Ministry of Education, protesting discriminatory hiring exam policies on spousal and employment scores. They chanted: “We won’t back down until we get our rights!”#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/qnEPUqBpww— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 30, 2025
Bakers and Farmers Rise Against State-Sponsored Theft
Protests over basic sustenance have become a flashpoint for public anger. On September 30, bakers in Mashhad, Yazd, and Khorramabad held coordinated, multi-day protests against the regime’s failure to pay essential subsidies. In Mashhad, demonstrators gathered outside the offices of the “Nanino” company and Sepah Bank, chanting slogans that directly accused the state of complicity in their suffering: “Enough promises, our tables are empty!” and “Nanino steals, the government supports it.”
Meanwhile, in Ardakan, farmers and tractor drivers blockaded the local agriculture office to protest severe cuts to their fuel quotas. They warned that this policy is making farming unsustainable, crippling their ability to produce food and destroying their livelihoods in a clear display of the regime’s destructive economic policies.
Pensioners: A Generation’s Political Awakening
The day’s most explicitly political condemnations of the regime came from retirees. In Kermanshah, pensioners from military, civil service, and social security funds held bold demonstrations, with chants that rejected the regime’s entire political and ideological foundation. Decrying decades of propaganda, they chanted, “The enemy is right here, they lie saying it’s America.” They also dismissed the false dichotomy of regime factions, shouting, “Reformists, Principalists, you’ve dragged Iran into the abyss.” Their core demand was not for minor reforms but for a fundamental shift in national priorities: “We want neither war nor slaughter; we want lasting welfare.”
More footage of the protest rally by retirees from different sectors in Kermanshah. In addition to voicing their economic grievances, the protesters are demanding the release of jailed activists.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/Oe9AJHuzmx
— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 30, 2025
Cracks in the Economic Engine: Unrest in Vital Industries
Discontent has also reached the heart of Iran’s economy. In Asaluyeh, hundreds of contract personnel from the Pars Oil and Gas Company protested for the second time in a month, demanding the implementation of an official court ruling (No. 3188) that the regime continues to ignore, showcasing a state that operates outside its own laws. In Ahvaz, current and retired oil industry workers also gathered to voice their grievances.
This unrest follows a significant victory for labor activism. After nearly three weeks of persistent protests, steelworkers in Ahvaz forced the government to concede, compelling the company to pay their long-overdue wages. This success serves as a powerful testament that organized, continuous resistance can break the regime’s will and has undoubtedly emboldened other sectors to demand their rights.
September 30—Asaluyeh & Shirinu, southern Iran
Hundreds of contract workers of Pars Oil & Gas rallied again at South Pars platforms, demanding enforcement of court ruling 3188 and payment of benefits. Their message: workers’ patience is running out.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/dHJpKNC4pa— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) September 30, 2025
The protests of September 30 are a clear verdict on the Iranian regime. The people’s chants are no longer limited to economic demands; they are a wholesale rejection of a corrupt and tyrannical system that has failed them on every level. From the capital to provincial cities, and across every vital sector of society, the message is the same: the Iranian people have lost all faith in this regime and are determined to reclaim their country.