Iran’s nationwide uprising entered its ninth day on Monday, January 5, 2026, after a bloody attack on Ilam’s Khomeini Hospital and fierce clashes in Tehran. Protesters returned to the streets in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, Cheragh‑Bargh and Ahangaran markets, as well as Haft Hoz, Naziabad, Tehransar, Yaft Abad, and Shahrak‑e Vali Asr, chanting “This year is the year of blood, Khamenei will be overthrown” and “Death to the dictator.” Unrest also flared in Isfahan, Qahdarijan, Arak, Khomeynishahr, Qom, Sonqor, Eslamabad‑e‑Gharb, Yasuj, and Bandar Ganaveh, where people denounced poverty, corruption, and costly foreign interventions with slogans like “The people live like beggars, the leader lives like a god.”
Gunfire in Sonqor, mass arrests in Ilam, and attacks on Basij bases
In Kermanshah province’s Sonqor, security forces opened fire on large crowds gathered around Teacher’s Square, but protesters stood their ground, chanting “Neither Gaza, nor Lebanon, my life for Iran” and “Death to Khamenei.” In Ilam, following Sunday’s hospital assault, the regime launched mass arrests, with field reports pointing to around 40 detained youths on Monday, at least 200 arrested the previous night, and up to 300 detainees across the province, leaving families without information about their loved ones.
Rebellious youth carried out direct resistance actions against repression centers. In Mardabad, Yazd, they attacked a Basij base involved in dispatching crackdown forces, while in Sari protesters rushed security agents, rescued a detainee from abduction, and forced the forces to flee. According to opposition sources, governor’s offices, Basij bases, and a “Relief Committee” branch were also targeted in Abadan, Neyriz, Yazd, Qazvin, and Ahvaz, and banners of Qassem Soleimani were burned in Mashhad and Neyriz.
Families, students, and international warning
Families of detainees and students played a central role on the ninth day. In Yasuj, relatives of arrested protesters rallied at the governorate, chanting “Their children are in Canada, our children are in prison” and “Freedom, freedom, freedom,” before being attacked by security forces and confronted with a heavy security presence.
At Birjand University, students rejected neutrality and vowed revenge with chants such as “I will avenge my brother’s killer” and “Death to the entire regime,” while Shiraz University students protested repressive dormitory measures as Azad University canceled exams nationwide and Sharif University dormitories were evacuated.
