Protests against Iranian government policies are unique 47 years of history of the Islamic Republic, say experts and eyewitnesses.
As people take to the streets across the country, US President Donald Trump threatens to "hit very hard where it hurts" if authorities crack down on demonstrations and that America is "standing ready to help".
Iranian authorities have said they will respond by attacking American allies and interests in the region.
How different are these protests, and the Iranian government's response to the uprising, from previous demonstrations in the country?
Wide reach
Experts believe that the scale and spread of this year's protests are unprecedented.
Sociologist Eli Korsandfar says that although the rallies were held in large Iranian cities, they also spread to smaller towns, "whose names many people may have never even heard of."
Iran has had protests before.
The so-called Green Movement of 2009 led a middle-class protest against alleged election fraud.
Although it was massive, it was focused on large cities.
Other major protests in 2017 and 2019 were limited to poorer areas.
They most resemble the recent protests from 2022, when demonstrations broke out after death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in custody.
This young woman was arrested by Iranian morality police for allegedly wearing a headscarf incorrectly.
These protests escalated rapidly after the death of Mahsa Amini, but reached their peak after six days, according to numerous reports.
By comparison, the current protests seem larger, more widespread, and growing more consistently since they began on December 28, 2025.
'Death to the dictator'
Like the protests of 2022, the current uprising is rooted in concrete dissatisfaction that quickly grew into calls for radical systemic change.
"The 2022 movement began with the issue of women. But other dissatisfactions were also reflected in it...
"The current protests started with issues that seemed to be economic in nature and in a very, very short period of time, they started to carry common messages," says Korsandfar.
In late December, market vendors began a strike in the heart of Tehran, reacting to sudden fluctuations in the Iranian rial's exchange rate against the US dollar.
The protests spread to poorer parts of the country in the west.
As in 2022, the provinces of Ilam and Lorestan were among the main epicenters.
Towards the end of December, protests were held, attended by thousands of people.
Millions of Iranians, even in the middle class, are facing a severe economic crisis and rapidly rising prices.
People demonstrating in the streets began chanting: "Death to the dictator!"
They are demanding the removal of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the regime he leads.
Pahlavi Factor
The 2022 protests seemed leaderless and soon petered out.
Unlike them, the current demonstrations have personalities, such as the exiled Reza Pahlavi, the son of the king deposed in 1979, who are trying to shape or lead the marches from afar.
This could partly explain why they last longer.
In the ongoing protests, chants demanding the return of the Pahlavi dynasty can be heard more than ever before.
Pahlavi declared himself king (shah) of Iran while in exile in the United States.
His calls for people to chant in the streets were widely shared.
Young people on social media within Iran are indirectly encouraging each other to join the demonstrations.
The scale of recent protests in cities like Tehran serves as a demonstration of the effectiveness of Pahlavi's call.
Analysts say that, as a result, the presence of a well-known opposition figure appears to have reinforced the belief of some protesters that there is a conceivable alternative if the current government falls.
Others suggest that any indication of support for Pahlavi does not necessarily mean a desire for the return of the monarchy.
Rather, it is an expression of desperation for any alternative to clerical rule, especially in the absence of visible, secular opposition within the country.
Watch: Footage of a row of bodies in black bags during the 2025/26 protests in Iran.
Trump's threats
Another factor that distinguishes the 2025 protests from previous ones, and even those from 2022, is the influence of America.
These demonstrations, unlike previous protests, appear to enjoy the support of the White House.
Trump threatened to attack government positions in support of the protesters, something that had never happened before.
During the 2009 protest movement against the alleged theft of the presidential election, demonstrators chanted: "Obama, Obama, you're either with them or with us!"
Former US President Barack Obama, who was in office in 2009, later expressed regret that he had not been more visible in supporting the protesters in the streets at the time.
Iranian President Masoud Pazakhstani says the demonstrations are being manipulated by "enemies of Iran."
The problem for him, however, is that his country has fewer friends than it has in recent years.
The Iranian authorities have lost key allies.: Bashar al-Assad has been overthrown. from the position of Syrian president, and Hezbollah in LebanonIt was also significantly weakened in the Israeli military action.
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Legacy of war
Unlike the 2022 demonstrations, this year's protests took shape quickly. after the 12-day war with Israel, and then the American and Israeli attacks on Iran.
Journalist Abbas Abdi believes that these events created an opportunity for the Iranian authorities to instill some kind of solidarity and cohesion among the people, but the government failed to seize it.
Some experts suggest that heavy blows dealt to the army over the past year have shattered the aura of prestige of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as the country's main military institution in the eyes of Iranians.
Building on the spirit of the 2022 demonstrations, Korsandfar sees a lasting change at work in the current protests: in conversations with women who took to the streets three years ago, many told her that the greatest success was being freed from fear of a repressive state.
Watch the video: Generations of Iranian women fighting for freedom since 1979
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- Protests in Iran: Hundreds killed, Trump considers military options
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- A Strand of Hair and a Wave of Anger: What Really Changed in Iran After the 'Women, Life, Freedom' Protests
- "Iran without a king is no good": Why some Iranians are now seeking forgiveness from the exiled empress
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