Despite the cold, the darkness of inflation, and the suffocating dominance of the mullahs’ regime that has chained the lives of the people, the ancient tradition of Yalda remains a cherished symbol for Iranians. On the night of the winter solstice, December 21, people curse the regime and hold onto the hope for the inevitable dawn of freedom. However, Yalda 2025 arrives under conditions so dire that even the regime’s own media outlets are running headlines such as “Inflation swallowed Yalda,” “Nuts and fruit out of reach,” and “Yalda of high prices; when the festive table bows under the weight of prices.”
The astronomical cost of a single night
According to the head of the Dried Fruit and Nut Union in Tehran, the price of Yalda nuts in retail stores ranges between 7 and 13 million rials per kilogram. However, data from the ILNA news agency on December 14 reveals even higher costs for a standard festive spread: one kilogram of nuts costs 16 million rials , pomegranates are 2.4 million rials per kilo, and a five-kilogram watermelon costs 2.5 million rials. Even a simple dinner of chicken costs around 2.1 million rials.
When these items are tallied, a simple Yalda table costs nearly 40 million rials. For a worker earning between 120 and 150 million rials a month, this celebration consumes approximately 40% of their entire monthly income. As the state-run Fararu website admitted on December 17, “The total cost of a Yalda table with a traditional dinner is equivalent to 40 percent of a worker’s minimum monthly wage.”
Empty tables and the shame of parents
The regime’s economic mismanagement has turned what should be a joyous family gathering into a source of anxiety and shame for parents unable to provide for their children. The state-run Arman-e Melli newspaper wrote on December 20, “Bread and cheese, eggs, and sometimes a simple homemade meal have become the ceiling of dietary wishes for some households.”
The inflation is so pervasive that even humble items like beets and turnips—historically the most affordable winter snacks—are now too expensive for many. Shopkeepers report a sharp decline in sales, noting that customers are buying with extreme caution or asking to buy on credit (store ledgers), a sign of the severe economic pressure on households. Consequently, Yalda has become the “longest night of worry” rather than the longest night of the year.
A looted economy managed by a mafia
This economic disaster is not limited to a single holiday; it is the result of a “looted economy” where inflation serves as a tool for the ruling mafia to plunder the nation’s wealth. Beyond Yalda, the cost of housing has reached 1 to 1.1 million rials per square meter this autumn. The inflation rate for medicine has surpassed 48%, clothing is over 42%, and food is over 66%. Compared to last year, the price of red meat has risen by 85%.
These statistics confirm that the poverty crushing the Iranian people is not an accident but a “designed and well-engineered product of a predatory regime.”
The dawn is inevitable
Despite the regime’s attempts to break the spirit of the nation through poverty and repression, Yalda remains a symbol of hope. It represents the certainty that the ice of winter will break under the hands of Iran’s people and their organized resistance. For a nation that has paid the price of resistance with the lives of its bravest children, the true celebration will come in a free Iran, without the Shah or mullahs, where the people will live in prosperity and Yalda will once again be a night of smiles.