On October 12 and 13, 2025, a groundswell of protest swept across Iran, revealing a nation pushed to its limits by a clerical regime mired in systemic failure. From university dormitories in Tehran to gold mines in Sistan and Baluchestan, and from the offices of telecommunication companies to the steps of provincial governments, a diverse chorus of Iranians—students, retirees, workers, and patients—rose up in a unified cry against corruption and oppression.
These widespread demonstrations are not isolated incidents but a cohesive popular uprising against a system where plundering institutions, led by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), enrich themselves while the populace suffers. This reality was starkly confirmed by the regime’s own Majlis Research Center, which reported a negative 0.3% economic growth for the first half of 2025, an official admission of the catastrophic state of the nation.
The New Generation’s Defiance
The regime’s failure to provide a future for Iran’s youth has ignited fierce resistance on university campuses. For the fifth consecutive night on October 12, students at Danesh dormitory of Khajeh Nasir University in Tehran protested from their dormitory balconies and courtyards against deteriorating living conditions, soaring tuition fees, and the commercialization of education.
October 12—Tehran, Iran
On the fifth consecutive night of protests at Khajeh Nasir University, dormitory students stood united as officials refused dialogue and left the scene. Students vowed to persist until their demands are met.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/EJJN3HU3IT— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 13, 2025
Their chants, including “The student will die but will not accept humiliation!” and “University is not a barracks, not a business!”, resonated with a clear rejection of the regime’s oppressive and profit-driven policies. The authorities responded with their usual tactics of deploying security personnel to film and intimidate protesters, but the students vowed to continue.
This scene of defiance was mirrored at Shahrekord University on the same day, where students protested contaminated cafeteria food by lining up their trays on the ground—a visceral symbol of the systemic neglect pervading Iran’s academic institutions.
Retirees Directly Target the IRGC’s Economic Empire
In a powerful, coordinated national movement on October 13, retired telecommunications workers held protests in major cities, including Tehran, Isfahan, Tabriz, Kermanshah, Sanandaj, and Ahvaz.
October 13—Sanandaj, western Iran
Retirees of the Telecommunications Company of Iran (TCI) rallied against corruption and injustice by regime-linked shareholders, declaring they can no longer tolerate mismanagement and exploitation.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/7osMB7P5ie— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 13, 2025
Their protests struck at the heart of the regime’s corrupt power structure. Protesters explicitly named the IRGC Cooperative Foundation (“Bonyad Taavon Sepah”) and the Execution of Imam Khomeini’s Order (EIKO or “Setad Ejrayi”)—two financial behemoths controlled by the IRGC and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei—as the source of their misery. They pointed out to the structural corruption, embezzlement, and looting of these entities, making it clear that the people know precisely who is responsible for their stolen pensions and collapsing livelihoods.
The Human Cost of Economic Collapse
The regime’s own negative GDP figures are a sterile reflection of a devastating reality on the ground. In cities and industrial centers across Iran, workers are fighting for survival.
- Abadan: Fired workers from the Abadan oil refinery have been protesting for over a month, left without work or answers. They cry out, “Who will answer to our wives and children?!”
- Sefidabeh: At the Sefidabeh gold mine, workers exposed blatant corruption, stating that while they toil without pay for months, the mine’s wealth is divided among “cronies and relatives of officials.” They reported systemic discrimination, with non-local workers receiving triple the pay of local hires.
- Shiraz: Angered by months of unpaid subsidies, bakers in Shiraz gathered outside the governor’s office, chanting, “Enough promises! Our tables are empty!”
- Chooka: In Gilan province, personnel at the Chooka factory went on strike yet again over several months of unpaid wages and insurance premiums.
October 13—Talesh, northern Iran
Workers of the Chouka Paper Factory went on strike again, protesting months of unpaid wages and insurance arrears. This marks yet another round of unrest over years of unfulfilled promises by management.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/oQjL98v1ww— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 13, 2025
A Society’s Fabric Torn Asunder
The regime’s failures extend into every aspect of daily life, dismantling basic social services. In Tehran, families of patients with the rare disease Cystinosis protested after the price of the life-saving drug Cystagon exploded from 200,000 tomans to a staggering 27 million tomans due to subsidy cuts. In Eslamshahr, members of a housing cooperative, who paid 400 million tomans each, protested being abandoned for seven years with only hollow promises.
October 12—Tehran, Iran
Families of patients with the rare disease cystinosis protest skyrocketing price of the drug Cystagon, now costing over 27 million tomans instead of 200,000. They denounced reduced insurance coverage and shortages of essential medicines.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/gYj0PnToU9— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) October 13, 2025
The protests of October 2025 paint a clear picture of a nation united in its opposition to the ruling theocracy. From students demanding their future to retirees fighting for their past savings, and from workers demanding their present wages to patients pleading for their lives, all fingers point to one source: a rotten system controlled by Khamenei and the IRGC.
The regime is economically bankrupt, morally corrupt, and socially rejected. The synchronized and fearless cries for justice across Iran are not mere pleas for reform; they are the unmistakable tremors of a nation demanding fundamental change and the reclamation of its stolen sovereignty.