Breaking Update: Here’s a clear explanation of the latest developments related to Breaking News:Tehran ready for ‘war and dialogue’ with US – DW – 01/12/2026– What Just Happened and why it matters right now.
Iran has had a long history of protest movements in the modern era that have shaped and re-shaped the country.
Two of the most significant were the 1953 plot to overthrow Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh and the 1979 revolution that deposed Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and brought about the Islamic Republic.
The 1953 coup plot was the result of Operation Ajax, a US plan, with British support, to remove the prime minister who had nationalized the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, along with several other major reforms.
The plot was successful and saw the consolidation of power under Pahlavi, but it also created distrust of the US and the shah who was seen as their puppet.
Anger against the shah and the lack of freedoms in the country eventually boiled over into widespread protests that included socialist, democratic and religious groups. The resulting revolution saw Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini take power and institute the Islamic Republic as a theocracy.
Since then, there have been many protest movements, especially among young Iranians who make up the majority of the population.
The most significant were the 1999 student protests over the closure of a reformist newspaper that resulted in several deaths and hundreds of arrests.
The 2009 Green Movement against the election of hardline President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad saw millions take to the street, with social media having been used as a key tool to organize the protests. Dozens were killed and thousands were arrested.
Economic protests in 2019 quickly turned into broader anti-government protests. The regime responded by shutting off the internet and launching a violent crackdown.
Just three years later, the “Women, Life, Freedom” protests rocked the country following the death of 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini for allegedly not wearing her hijab properly. The mass protests proved to be a major challenge to the regime, although it ultimately survived.
Despite a period of relative stability after the revolution, protest movements have seen an intensification in recent years, with economic hardship worsening and memories of previous government crackdowns alive in the social consciousness.