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Live report: Day 9 of Iran Uprising: Protests resume in multiple cities as regime launches mass arrests in Ilam

By Mahmoud Hakamian
Iran protests day 9
Iran protests day 9

Live report | Monday, January 5, 2026

The nationwide uprising against the religious dictatorship in Iran entered its ninth consecutive day on Monday, January 5, 2026. Following a bloody Sunday marked by the regime’s attack on a hospital in Ilam and intense clashes in Tehran, the unrest has shown no sign of abating.

On Monday, reports from across the country indicate that protests have resumed in Tehran’s commercial districts and expanded significantly in western provinces, particularly in Kermanshah. Despite a heavy security presence and internet blackouts in key areas, citizens in Sonqor, Yasuj, and Tehran have taken to the streets, chanting slogans against the regime’s foreign interventions and domestic repression. The uprising, initially sparked by economic collapse, has firmly established itself as a political movement seeking the overthrow of the ruling theocracy.

Day 9 Roundup: Clashes in Tehran’s market, mass arrests in Ilam, nightly protest rallies

On Monday, January 5, 2026, the ninth day of the uprising saw a dramatic escalation from daytime strikes to intense nightly confrontations. While the regime attempted to crush the movement with mass arrests in Ilam and internet blackouts in Tehran, the resistance expanded. Nightfall brought live fire in western Iran, clashes in central Iran, and the rescue of detainees in the north, with protesters showing their resolve to bring down the regime.

Key highlights from today:

  • Tehran: From Bazaar Strike to Nightly Unrest: Following intense clashes in the Grand Bazaar and Ahangaran Market during the day, protesters took over streets in Haft Hoz and Naziabad at night, chanting “This year is the year of blood, Khamenei will be overthrown.”
  • Gunfire in Sonqor: In Kermanshah province, security forces opened fire on protesters in Sonqor to disperse the crowds. In a show of immense courage, the people stood their ground and continued their rally.
  • Direct Resistance & Self-Defense: In Mardabad (Yazd), rebellious youth attacked a Basij base that had dispatched repressive agents to crack down on demonstrations. In Sari (North), demonstrators rushed security forces, successfully rescuing a detainee from abduction and forcing the agents to flee.
  • Central Iran Rising: In Isfahan, crowds highlighted the regime’s corruption with the chant: “The people live like beggars, the leader lives like a god!” In Arak and Khomeynishahr, youth lit fires to block the path of suppressive forces.
  • Mass Arrests in Ilam: Following Sunday’s hospital attack, the regime launched a wave of mass arbitrary arrests, detaining hundreds of youth in Ilam.
  • Yasuj Crackdown: Security forces attacked families of detained protesters who had gathered at the governorate to demand the release of their loved ones.
  • University Protests: Students at Birjand University rallied against neutrality, chanting, “I will avenge my brother’s killer.”
  • International Warning: U.S. President Donald Trump warned the regime that the United States is prepared to take severe action if the killing of protesters continues.

Update—21:30 CET

Nightfall brings fire and defiance: “Khamenei, we will bring you down!”

As Monday night deepened, the uprising intensified across Iran’s central and western provinces. Protesters in Tehran, Isfahan, and Arak lit fires to block streets, while slogans targeting Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei echoed in dozens of cities. In a significant escalation in western Iran, security forces opened fire on protesters in Sonqor, yet the people refused to disperse. Meanwhile, in Yazd, the youth moved to direct action, targeting a Basij base with Molotov cocktails.

Tehran and Central Iran: “The leader lives like a god, the people live like beggars”

In the capital, the protests spread to the Haft Hoz and Naziabad districts. In Haft Hoz, crowds chanted “This year is the year of blood, Khamenei will be overthrown,” directly challenging the regime’s survival. In Naziabad, a large rally took place despite specific threats of a crackdown.

In central Iran, the unrest was widespread. In Isfahan, protesters highlighted the regime’s corruption and the poverty of the masses, chanting, “The people are living like beggars, the leader is living like a god!” In Qahdarijan, the chants turned personal and fierce: “Khamenei you monster, we will bring you down!”

In Arak and Khomeynishahr, the youth lit fires to block the movement of suppressive forces, chanting “Poverty, corruption, high prices, we will overthrow the regime!” Even in the religious city of Qom, crowds defied heavy security to chant, “Don’t be afraid, we are all together!”

Western Iran: Gunfire in Sonqor

The situation in Kermanshah province has become critical. In Sonqor, security forces opened fire in an attempt to disperse the crowds. However, reports indicate that the protesters stood their ground and continued their rally late into the night. In Eslamabad-e Gharb, the streets were filled with chants of “Death to Khamenei.”

Direct Action and Student Uprising: Basij Base Attacked and Detainee Rescued

The resistance is taking on more confrontational forms. In Mardabad, Yazd, rebellious youth attacked a base of the paramilitary Basij force that had dispatched forces to crack down on demonstrations. In Sari (northern Iran), demonstrators rushed security forces who were attempting to abduct a protester; the people succeeded in saving the detainee and forced the agents to flee.

University students continue to play a vanguard role. At Birjand University, students chanted against the “disgrace” of neutrality and vowed revenge, shouting, “I will avenge my brother’s killer” and “Death to the entire regime.”

In Yasuj, the regime dispatched security forces to crack down on families of detained protesters who had gathered at the governorate demanding the release of their loved ones.

Update—18:00 CET

Tehran: Clashes in the Economic Heart and Internet Blackout

As the uprising continues, the regime has turned the area surrounding Tehran’s Grand Bazaar into a militarized zone. Reports confirm that the internet was completely cut off in the Bazaar district and for several kilometers around it. Mobile phone signals are also severely disrupted to prevent news of the crackdown from spreading.

Despite this isolation, clashes erupted in the Cheragh-Bargh area. Video footage confirms direct confrontations between protesters and suppressive forces. In the Ahangaran Market and Kalantari Alley, regime forces brutally attacked shopkeepers and civilians. Simultaneously, in the Narmak and Tehransar districts, citizens defied the crackdown to hold nightly protests, chanting anti-regime slogans.

Sonqor and Eslamabad-e-Gharb: Western Iran Rises

In Kermanshah province, the city of Sonqor has become a new flashpoint. A large crowd gathered on the main street and at Teacher’s Square (Meydan-e Moallem). Defying threats, they chanted the patriotic slogan, “Neither Gaza, nor Lebanon, my life for Iran,” rejecting the regime’s costly regional proxy wars, alongside chants of “Death to the dictator.”

Further west in Eslamabad-e-Gharb, protesters set up roadblocks to hamper the movement of security units and engaged in clashes with forces dispatched to suppress them.

Ilam: The Aftermath of a War Crime and Mass Arrests

Following the brutal attack on Khomeini Hospital in Ilam on Sunday, the regime has launched a campaign of mass arbitrary arrests. Field reports indicate that approximately 40 teenagers and young people have been arrested in Ilam city alone today, with 10 reported missing. Families have no information regarding their whereabouts.

Witnesses state that on the previous night, at least 200 people were arrested in a coordinated raid and transported away in buses. Unofficial reports suggest the number of detainees in the province could be as high as 300. The city remains in a state of high tension.

Mrs. Maryam Rajavi condemned the attack on the hospital as an “unforgivable crime” and called on the youth of neighboring provinces, specifically Lorestan and Kurdistan, to rise in support of the people of Ilam.

Yasuj and the South: “Our Children are in Prison, Yours are in Canada”

In Yasuj, southwest Iran, families of those detained during the uprising held a protest rally. Their chants highlighted the deep class divide and corruption of the ruling elite: “Their [officials’] children are in Canada, our children are in prison!” They also chanted “Freedom, freedom, freedom.”

https://x.com/Mojahedineng/status/2008176373433802970

In Bandar Ganaveh, southern Iran, merchants kept their shops closed in a full strike. Meanwhile, in Bampour (southeast), security forces resorted to firing live ammunition at civilians to prevent them from gathering.

International Reaction: U.S. President Warns the Regime

As the crackdown intensifies, U.S. President Donald Trump addressed the situation in comments to the media. He issued a stern warning to the Iranian regime regarding its treatment of protesters. “If [Iran] starts killing people like they have in the past, I think they’re gonna get hit very hard by the United States,” President Trump stated, signaling potential severe consequences for the regime’s human rights abuses.

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