The movement that started against inflation in Iran has now turned into a demonstration challenging the power of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The protesters are raising slogans of handing over the power of the country to Iran’s opposition leader and exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi. Iran’s state TV gave information about the protests for the first time and claimed that ‘terrorist agents’ of America and Israel spoiled the atmosphere. Addressing the nation, Khamenei said that some rioters wanted to please US President Donald Trump.

Will not tolerate mercenaries: Khamenei
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei asked protesters to focus on their country’s problems. He warned that Tehran would not tolerate people working as mercenaries for foreigners. He accused the protesters of ‘causing havoc in their own country to please a foreign leader, especially US President Donald Trump.’ According to the report of news agency Associated Press, when Khamenei was saying these things, the crowd raised slogans of Down with America.

Trump’s hands are stained with the blood of thousands of Iranians: Khamenei

Khamenei said, ‘Everyone should be made to understand that we came to power after millions of sacrifices and are not going to bow down so easily. There are many problems within the United States. If he knew how to run a country, he would have run his own country. During this, Khamenei also mentioned the American attack on Iran’s nuclear plants in June 2025. He said, ‘American President Trump’s hands are stained with the blood of thousands of Iranians. Youth of Iran, maintain unity and readiness. A united nation can win over any enemy.

Raza Pahlavi called for demonstration

Reza Pahlavi told the people of Iran in a social media post, ‘The eyes of the whole world are on you. Take to the streets. Iran’s state television showed fires in metro stations and banks and burning buses and cars. Television accused the People’s Mujahideen Organization (MKO), an opposition group that broke away after the 1979 Islamic revolution, of being behind the unrest.

Internet and telephone lines were cut in the country on Thursday (8 January 2026) night after protesters joined protests in Tehran and other parts of the country on the call of Iran’s exiled Prince. Internet company ‘Cloudflare’ and another company ‘Netblox’ reported the loss of internet connectivity and both claimed the interference of the Iranian government for this.

For the first time, the Khamenei regime has acknowledged violence and casualties amid massive protests that have continued in Iran for the last 12 days. State TV acknowledged that violent incidents took place during the demonstrations and there were reports of some casualties. However, the government has not considered this to be the anger of the domestic people.

What did the Khamenei government say?

State TV broke its silence for the first time in a program and said that there was violence in the demonstrations and people were injured. But all this has been done by ‘American-Israeli terrorist agents’. The government claims that these agents are spreading arson and violence so that the country becomes unstable.

Earlier the government was ignoring the protests or calling them a minor incident. Now by accepting the casualties the government has accepted the seriousness of the situation.

America gave strict warning to Iran

US President Donald Trump has given a strong warning to Iran. He said that if violence was done against peaceful protesters, America would take a ‘strong attack’ and help the protesters. After this threat, Iran has closed its airspace and put the military on high alert.

The exiled crown prince supported the demonstration

Iranian opposition leader and exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi supported the demonstration, saying, ‘Millions of Iranians demanded their freedom tonight. In response, the government in Iran has cut all lines of communication. Internet has been shut down. Landline has been disconnected. They can also try to jam the satellite signals.

What are the reasons for the demonstrations in Iran?

The situation has become very serious in more than 111 cities of Iran. Especially on Thursday night, incidents like arson and firing on protesters have been reported in the capital Tehran.

• Inflation is increasing very fast in Iran.
• The economy is in bad shape.
• The value of Rial (Iran’s currency) has fallen a lot.
• People are finding it difficult to buy everyday items and medicines.

Protests in Iran have spread to 111 cities and towns in all 31 provinces. According to reports, at least 34 protesters and 4 security personnel have been killed so far. 2,200 protesters have been arrested.