Iran Protests 2026: How Women Are Leading ‘Death To Khamenei’ Uprising | World News
Iran is currently experiencing a historic anti-regime protest that erupted in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar on December 28, 2025, due to record inflation and currency collapse, and quickly spread across the country, spreading to nearly 31 provinces and more than 80 cities.
The protest has entered its second week, with protesters chanting ‘Long live the Shah’ and ‘Death to Khamenei’ defying lethal force, with protesters reviving the Lion-Sun flag from before the 1979 Iranian Revolution.
Women’s active participation has sparked global discussions and acclaim; Social media was filled with videos of women burning ‘headscarves’, burning portraits of Khamenei and videos of them lighting cigarettes.
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While the World is in Admiration, Iranian Women Stand Up to Theocratic Oppression
Women are leading Iran’s anti-regime protests with fierce determination over decades of theocratic oppression and morality police brutality under mandatory ‘hijab laws’, transforming personal subjugation into a national revolt for gender equality and secular freedom.
With years of repression, police violence like the murder of Mahsa Amini in 2022, and the loss of Shah-era freedoms, women in Iran are risking their lives for freedom, fueling their role on the front lines by burning hijabs, chanting ‘Women, Life, Freedom’ and defying the live fire for gender equality and secular rule.
In videos circulating on social media, women came to the fore with mothers protecting their daughters against armed attacks in Basij, live-streaming crackdowns, burning portraits of Iran’s religious leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and chanting “Death to Khamenei” across Iran.
Khamenei’s notice
The Iranian protests have reached the Iranian diaspora in major global cities such as London, where protesters have replaced the existing Iranian flag with a lion and sun symbol from the pre-revolutionary period.
In the Netherlands, thousands of people gathered at the Malieveld site to voice support for Iranian families amid communications blackouts and deadly crackdowns.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, meanwhile, denounced the protesters as ‘vandals’, ‘saboteurs’, ‘troublemakers’ and ‘enemy mercenaries’ and accused them of serving US interests, especially “pleasing President Trump”.
Also Read: Trump Eyes Iran Attacks: Military Options, ‘Freedom’ Oath Amid Protests
