Iran protests: ‘This is about economic collapse and the fury of ordinary people’

Read time: 4 mins

In brief…

• Protests have been taking place in Iran since 28 December, in the biggest movement in recent memory for the country and its population, who are calling for an end to its Islamic regime.
• With talk shifting from protest to revolution, The News Agents say this could deliver an “epic restructuring of geopolitics” that could affect the world.
• Iranian/British actor and comedian Omid Djalili tells The News Agents there has been a lack of Western media interest in events in Iran, where its people are seen as “pawns”.

What’s the story?

Iran is no stranger to protests – but what's happening right now is bigger, and potentially more consequential, than anything it has seen in recent memory.

Iranians across the country have been taking to the streets – first to protest the country's free-falling economy, now against its Islamic regime – with Donald Trump threatening to get involved if it continues to escalate.

Protests have taken place across all 31 districts in Iran, ongoing since 28 December, and are the largest since the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022, a 22-year-old woman who died in suspicious circumstances after being arrested for not wearing a hijab.

But what's happening now is different – having begun as a stand against economic issues, but growing to something far more impactful.

"It is clear at this point now, protest is concerning itself with other issues, including the question of political repression," says Lewis Goodall.

"Experts and analysts say this is the most significant protest the regime has seen for some years."

But while more than 35 people have been killed by government forces, and thousands arrested, the Islamic regime does not appear as heavy-handed as it has in quelling previous uprisings.

"Maybe that is because they're scared that the support is so widespread and so extensive that it's not going to be that easy to suppress," says Jon Sopel.

"It's not over someone wearing a hijab. This is about economic collapse. This is about the fury of ordinary people.

Those involved are referring to the situation in Iran as more than a protest – they believe this is a revolution.

"The protests have not been crushed. They are spreading. They're getting wider," Jon adds.

"If that revolution comes about, if there is an overthrow of the Islamic regime in Tehran, that will be an epic restructuring of geopolitics for the Middle East and to some extent the world."

A turning point for Iran – and the Middle East?

Social media has been flooded with footage from the protests – although potentially overshadowed by recent actions of the Trump administration and the overwhelming number of sexualised images of women and children on X/Twitter – and following closely has been Iranian/British actor and comedian Omid Djalili.

He tells The News Agents the most incredible thing seen in footage from the protests is how the people of Iran are ripping down flags and toppling statutes – which he says under normal circumstances would get people "shot in the face immediately".

"The economy has collapsed there," Djalili says.

"Ordinary people are going up to, and reasoning with, the security forces, saying their money is as worthless as everyone else's, and asking them who they are protecting."

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, issued a call to government troops to bring protesters "to their knees".

"These are crimes against humanity happening right now, but a lot of the security forces are running away," Djalili says.

"There's been a tremendous shift. I'm not saying it's happened, but definitely hashtag #Iranprotest2026 has now changed to #Iranrevolution2026."

There have been claims that what is happening in Iran has been motivated by America and Israel, but Djalili believes what is happening is "totally organic".

The Iranian people themselves have said, we will deal with this. We will put in whatever government we want, leave us be. We are dealing with this. Whatever Donald Trump has said he's going to do – he probably won't have to.

Trump has said America will intervene if more protesters are killed.

"We are calling for the security forces to give up, join the people, to stop the bloodshed," Djalili adds.

"But because the Supreme Leader has continued to call for more shootings, people are fighting back."

A new leader for Iran?

The protest movement in Iran appears to be coalescing behind Reza Pahlavi, its Crown Prince, and Djalili believes his stance and leadership is what makes this moment so potentially important for the country's angry citizens.

"For the first time, they seem to have a figurehead, and Reza Pahlavi seems to symbolise a movement, whether people want the monarchy back or not," Djalili says.

"He symbolises one thing, and that's national unity."

A change in leadership, he says, would change the entire Middle East region.

"If the Islamic regime falls, this is the biggest international news we would have short of contact with aliens.

"The Islamic regime has been funding terrorism everywhere."

But despite this potentially huge change, Djalili says there has been a lack of media interest in the protests in Iran,

"We should be supporting any people who are under an oppressive regime," he says.

"The people of Iran seem to be pawns that we can just forget about – and I think that's why people are not covering it."

Listen to the latest episode of The News Agents.