Overview
- Demonstrations that began with shopkeeper strikes have spread to 17 of Iran’s 31 provinces, marking the most serious challenge since 2022.
- The rial fell to about 1.42 million per US dollar after a six-month drop of roughly 56 percent, with reported average food prices up 72 percent year over year.
- President Masoud Pezeshkian pledged economic reforms as Abdolnaser Hemmati took over the central bank and vowed to restore stability.
- Reports cite at least a dozen casualties as protests expand, with the latest wave said to have originated in Azna, Lorestan province.
- External pressure grew as President Donald Trump warned the US is “locked and loaded,” Iran lodged a complaint at the UN, Israeli accounts encouraged protests, and Ali Larijani cautioned US intervention would endanger regional stability.