Iranian security officials arrested three major leaders of recent riots in the western city of Khorramabad as protests over the country’s severe economic crisis spread to multiple provinces on January 3, 2026. Cybersecurity company Cloudflare reported an average 35 percent drop in internet traffic volume compared with previous days, following user complaints of sporadic disruptions to home and mobile connections that began on Thursday. At least 10 people have been killed during the demonstrations that originated in Tehran last Sunday, according to Al Jazeera.
The protests started among traders and salesmen in downtown Tehran before expanding nationwide, driven by record inflation and a collapsing currency, Al Jazeera reported. In Hamedan, a young business owner was killed in circumstances a regional governor’s deputy described as suspicious and attributed to enemies seeking to portray authorities negatively. Hamzeh Amraei told state media the death appeared designed to damage the government’s image in the media.
In Qom, south of Tehran, a 17-year-old boy was shot dead and another person linked to terrorist movements died in a grenade explosion, according to top security official Morteza Heydari. Heydari claimed hostile elements were responsible for the boy’s death but provided no further details on the second incident. State media separately reported that armed and masked men killed a veteran Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps member in Malekshahi, in Ilam’s central province, with the semiofficial Fars news agency saying at least three people died in that city.
The provincial branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps stated that the three arrested individuals in Khorramabad were key figures in the recent unrest in Lorestan province, where multiple protests have occurred over several days. State television broadcast alleged confessions from blindfolded or blurred-face men who claimed they were armed or in contact with foreign agents aiming to destabilise the country. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei blamed foreign influence in a Saturday address and said rioters must be put in their place.
The demonstrations have unfolded against a backdrop of economic deterioration that IMF data places at an annual inflation rate projected near 69 percent for 2026, compounded by years of international sanctions. Al Jazeera noted that inflation has hovered among the world’s highest in recent years, with the rial losing substantial value and contributing to widespread shortages. Similar protests in 2019 and 2022 also prompted authorities to impose internet restrictions, Human Rights Watch reported in assessments of past crackdowns.
Iranian authorities have previously slowed or shut down connectivity during periods of unrest, including a near-complete halt in mid-June 2025 amid conflict with Israel and the United States. Minister of Information and Communications Technology Sattar Hashemi told reporters that Iran repelled one of the largest cyberattacks in recent memory on Sunday, which may have affected bandwidth. Businesses, schools and government offices remained shuttered on Saturday, officially due to cold weather and electricity management, with many online merchants announcing they would pause operations in solidarity with the protests.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said during a Saturday speech that it is unashamedly dropping the bombs on women and children and committing genocide, but they tell us we must not hurt anyone. The remarks referenced U.S. support for Israel’s actions in Gaza following a tenuous ceasefire. Authorities organised pro-government gatherings in Tehran and other cities to mark a religious holiday and the anniversary of the 2020 killing of Qassem Soleimani, with state media estimating thousands in attendance at the capital event.
