{"id":342636,"date":"2026-02-15T22:38:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T21:38:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=342636"},"modified":"2026-02-15T22:38:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T21:38:12","slug":"irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-protests\/irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran\u2019s Clerical State Is Cornered: Defiance, Empty Tables, and a New Unrest Cycle"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_342249\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-342249\" style=\"width: 1000px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-342249\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022.jpg\" alt=\"Street clashes in Iran as protesters set fire barricades amid nationwide unrest. December 3, 2022\" width=\"1000\" height=\"564\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022-768x433.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022-745x420.jpg 745w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022-150x85.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022-696x393.jpg 696w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-342249\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Street clashes in Iran as protesters set fire barricades amid nationwide unrest \u2014 December 3, 2022<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Iran\u2019s ruling theocracy is facing a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/economy\/irans-polycrisis-a-regime-entrapped-by-a-convergence-of-failures\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">convergence of crises<\/a> that repression cannot solve: collapsing purchasing power, widening social anger, and growing international penalties linked to the regime\u2019s crackdown. In recent days, reports from inside the country describe coordinated acts of street defiance by youth networks, fresh protests by workers and pensioners, and renewed campus mobilization in the wake of January\u2019s unrest. The regime\u2019s reflex\u2014blackouts, raids, arrests, and propaganda\u2014signals not confidence but fear of a society that is steadily shedding fear under Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Opposition reporting from the People&#8217;s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) network inside Iran says \u201cResistance Units\u201d carried out about <a href=\"https:\/\/news.mojahedin.org\/i\/%DB%B5%DB%B0-%D9%BE%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA%DB%8C%DA%A9-%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%82%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%A8%DB%8C-%D8%B4%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%84-%D8%AA%D8%B5%D9%88%DB%8C%D8%B1%D9%86%DA%AF%D8%A7%D8%B1%DB%8C-%D9%BE%D8%AE%D8%B4-%D8%B4%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%86%D8%B5%D8%A8-%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%B1-%D8%AF%DB%8C%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%86%D9%88%DB%8C%D8%B3%DB%8C-%D8%B4%D9%87%D8%B1%D9%87%D8%A7%DB%8C-%D9%85%DB%8C%D9%87%D9%86-%D8%A8%D9%87-%D9%85%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%A8%D8%AA-%DA%86%D9%87%D9%84-%D9%87%D9%81%D8%AA%D9%85%DB%8C%D9%86-%D8%B3%D8%A7%D9%84\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">50 coordinated actions<\/a> tied to the anniversary season of the 1979 revolution\u2014image projection, banner drops, slogan broadcasts, and wall-writing in cities including Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, and Zahedan. The recurring slogans described in the report\u2014 \u201cdeath to the dictator\u201d and \u201cneither Shah nor mullah\u201d\u2014 dismiss any \u201csafe\u201d and fake alternative to the clerical dictatorship and call for a democratic and free Iranian republic.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The operational logic is unmistakable: dispersed micro-actions stretch the security apparatus and normalize open contempt. Crucially, this political defiance is colliding with basic survival politics\u2014food, wages, and medicine\u2014so that \u201clivelihood\u201d protests increasingly read as indictments of the state itself, and it challenges the regime\u2019s claim to public loyalty.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">February 15\u2014Ahvaz, southwest Iran<br \/>Bakers rallied in front of the provincial governorate, protesting the reduction in their flour quotas and the non-payment of government subsidies.<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/IranProtests?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#IranProtests<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/E0QuudYDos\">pic.twitter.com\/E0QuudYDos<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; People&#39;s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI\/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Mojahedineng\/status\/2023069703292260377?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Bread and Dignity<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">On February 15, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ilna.ir\/%D8%A8%D8%AE%D8%B4-%DA%A9%D8%A7%D8%B1%DA%AF%D8%B1%DB%8C-9\/1751810-%D8%AA%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9-%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%88%D8%A7%DB%8C%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%AE%D9%88%D8%B2%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%85%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%A8%D9%84-%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%B1%DB%8C\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ILNA reported a protest<\/a> by bakers in Khuzestan Province, who spread empty tablecloths outside the governorate building to dramatize what they described as flour-quota cuts and the non-payment of state support for roughly a year. When bread producers accuse officials of pushing them toward ruin, economic mismanagement becomes a political accelerant.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The same day, retirees rallied in Kermanshah and Shush outside Social Security offices, demanding pensions that match the poverty line and access to affordable healthcare, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ilna.ir\/%D8%A8%D8%AE%D8%B4-%DA%A9%D8%A7%D8%B1%DA%AF%D8%B1%DB%8C-9\/1751763-%D8%AA%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B2%D9%86%D8%B4%D8%B3%D8%AA%DA%AF%D8%A7%D9%86-%DA%A9%D8%A7%D8%B1%DA%AF%D8%B1%DB%8C-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D8%B4%D9%88%D8%B4-%DA%A9%D8%B1%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%B4%D8%A7%D9%87-%D9%85%D8%B3%D8%AA%D9%85%D8%B1%DB%8C-%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%B1%D8%A7-%D8%A8%D9%87-%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%B2%D9%87-%D8%AE%D8%B7-%D9%81%D9%82%D8%B1-%D8%B2%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%AF-%DA%A9%D9%86%DB%8C%D8%AF?utm_source=chatgpt.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">according to ILNA<\/a>; IRNA also covered the Kermanshah gathering as a \u201clivelihood\u201d demand. But in reality, most of the slogans were political and retirees called out the regime for its suppression and demanded the release of political prisoners.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Student activism is resurfacing as a parallel fault line. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hambastegimeli.com\/115998_%D8%AA%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%AA%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B6%DB%8C-%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%B4%D8%AC%D9%88%DB%8C%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%88%D9%85-%D9%BE%D8%B2%D8%B4%DA%A9%DB%8C-%D8%AA%D9%87%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86-?utm_source=chatgpt.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Opposition-linked reporting<\/a> said students at Tehran University of Medical Sciences boycotted exams on February 14, read a statement demanding the release of detained medical staff, and memorialized a slain student, Aida Heydari. In Iran\u2019s protest cycles, campuses repeatedly act as accelerators\u2014turning scattered anger into coordinated action and widening it across professions.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">February 15\u2014Kermanshah, western Iran<br \/>Retirees of the Social Security Organization resume protest rallies, demanding higher pensions and access to basic services. As the economy continues to plunge, they have been abandoned by the government.<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/IranProtests?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#IranProtests<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/6MjvN9i0VA\">pic.twitter.com\/6MjvN9i0VA<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; People&#39;s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI\/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Mojahedineng\/status\/2023062290929496510?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\">Fear and Blowback<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The regime\u2019s fear is written into its own reporting. In early February, ISNA and IRIB News reported the arrest of 158 people in Qazvin province, alongside claims of dismantled \u201cterrorist cells\u201d and the seizure of Molotov cocktails and other items\u2014language meant to criminalize dissent rather than explain it.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Repression at home is feeding isolation abroad\u2014and exposure that Tehran cannot control. On February 14, state-run outlet <a href=\"https:\/\/www.khabaronline.ir\/news\/2182194\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Khabaronline reported<\/a> that X began removing paid \u201cblue check\u201d verification from accounts linked to officials including Ali Larijani, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, and Abbas Araghchi, after criticism that selling premium services to sanctioned figures could violate U.S. restrictions.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">From Zahedan to Tehran: Resistance units draw the red line against all dictatorships <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/gaKUHDZnmo\">https:\/\/t.co\/gaKUHDZnmo<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; People&#39;s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI\/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Mojahedineng\/status\/2022677103443947925?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 14, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Foreign reporting sharpened the exposure: on February 12, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wired.com\/story\/elon-musk-x-premium-accounts-iran\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIRED cited<\/a> a Tech Transparency Project report alleging that more than two dozen Iranian officials, agencies, and state-linked outlets used X\u2019s paid premium services\u2014potentially gaining boosted reach\u2014while ordinary citizens faced blackout conditions.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"690\">As more activists linked to the <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">PMOI<\/span><\/span> regain connectivity after the state-imposed international internet shutdown, their <a href=\"https:\/\/news.mojahedin.org\/i\/%D9%82%DB%8C%D8%A7%D9%85-%D9%82%D9%84%D8%A8-%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%B2%DB%8C-%D8%A2%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%87%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%85-%DB%8C%DA%AF%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%88%DB%8C%DA%98%D9%87-%DA%A9%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%84-%D8%AE%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%B3%D8%B7-%D8%B4%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%B4%DA%AF%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%B4%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%85%D8%B1%DA%AF-%D8%AF%DB%8C%DA%A9%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%B1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">inside-Iran dispatches<\/a> are filling in gaps about the scale and intensity of the January 2026 uprising that were harder to document during the blackout.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"692\" data-end=\"1756\">In one of the starkest episodes described, the <a href=\"https:\/\/news.mojahedin.org\/i\/%D9%82%DB%8C%D8%A7%D9%85-%D9%82%D9%84%D8%A8-%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%B2%DB%8C-%D8%A2%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%87%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%85-%DB%8C%DA%AF%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%88%DB%8C%DA%98%D9%87-%DA%A9%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%84-%D8%AE%DB%8C%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%B3%D8%B7-%D8%B4%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%B4%DA%AF%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%B4%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%85%D8%B1%DA%AF-%D8%AF%DB%8C%DA%A9%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%B1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PMOI-linked report says<\/a> that on January 8, 2026, <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Naziabad<\/span><\/span> became a prolonged confrontation in which \u201crebellious youths\u201d torched multiple motorcycles and vehicles belonging to riot-police units, blocked streets and claimed temporary control of them, and set fire to a bus used to transport security forces, all while chanting \u201cdeath to the dictator.\u201d In <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Takestan<\/span><\/span>, an office of the <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Khomeini Relief Committee<\/span><\/span> was set on fire\u2014portrayed by the opposition as striking a regime institution and it adds that residents signaled approval by honking as clashes unfolded. State media, while blaming \u201crioters,\u201d has separately confirmed extensive bus burnings in Tehran during those unrest days.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-start=\"1758\" data-end=\"2385\">And the regime\u2019s anxiety about organized resistance is visible in its own messaging: on February 13, 2026, parliamentary speaker <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Mohammad Bagher <a href=\"https:\/\/www.isna.ir\/news\/1404112414343\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ghalibaf<\/a><\/span><\/span> complained that foreign bodies \u201ckeep calling the IRGC terrorist,\u201d then pivoted into a long denunciation of the PMOI invoking \u201c17,000\u201d victims and warning against \u201creversing\u201d the roles of \u201cexecutioner and martyr.\u201d That fixation\u2014broadcast through state-linked channels\u2014reads less like confidence than a defensive attempt to delegitimize an opponent the regime clearly still treats as a strategic threat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Iran&rsquo;s ruling theocracy is facing a convergence of crises that repression cannot solve: collapsing purchasing power, widening social anger, and growing international penalties linked to the regime&rsquo;s crackdown. In recent [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":342249,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[130],"class_list":{"0":"post-342636","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-iran-protests","8":"tag-iran-protests"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Iran\u2019s Clerical State Is Cornered: Defiance, Empty Tables, and a New Unrest Cycle - NCRI<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Iran\u2019s ruling theocracy is facing a convergence of crises that repression cannot solve: collapsing purchasing power, widening social anger, and growing\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-protests\/irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Iran\u2019s Clerical State Is Cornered: Defiance, Empty Tables, and a New Unrest Cycle - NCRI\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Iran\u2019s ruling theocracy is facing a convergence of crises that repression cannot solve: collapsing purchasing power, widening social anger, and growing\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-protests\/irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NCRI\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-15T21:38:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"564\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mansoureh Galestan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@iran_policy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@iran_policy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mansoureh Galestan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":[\"Article\",\"BlogPosting\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ncr-iran.org\\\/en\\\/news\\\/iran-protests\\\/irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ncr-iran.org\\\/en\\\/news\\\/iran-protests\\\/irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Mansoureh Galestan\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ncr-iran.org\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/4039d83ce2c628eef0e1a1f461381ab9\"},\"headline\":\"Iran\u2019s Clerical State Is Cornered: Defiance, Empty Tables, and a New Unrest Cycle\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-15T21:38:12+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ncr-iran.org\\\/en\\\/news\\\/iran-protests\\\/irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":826,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ncr-iran.org\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ncr-iran.org\\\/en\\\/news\\\/iran-protests\\\/irans-clerical-state-is-cornered-defiance-empty-tables-and-a-new-unrest-cycle\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.ncr-iran.org\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/iran-nationwide-uprising-2022.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Iran Protests\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Iran Protests &amp; 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