A Year in Review: Iranian Women’s Resistance Against Religious Dictatorship

December 2025 Report: A Year in Review: Iranian Women’s Resistance Against Religious Dictatorship

In 2025, Iranian women faced escalating challenges and deepening injustices. Yet, they never surrendered in their struggle against the ruling religious dictatorship. Once again, they stood firm, carrying the banner of resistance.

The final 2025 issue of the monthly publication of the NCRI Women’s Committee is dedicated to reviewing the most significant developments of the year, focusing on the resistance of women and political prisoners sentenced to death across Iran, despite crushing economic pressure, widespread poverty, and entrenched structural discrimination.

January 2025: Nationwide Protests Intensify with Women at the Forefront

The year 2025 began with a dramatic surge in near-daily protests across Iran, with women playing a leading role. From Tehran to Sanandaj and Ilam, women of all ages and social backgrounds took to the streets demanding social justice, improved living conditions, and an end to discrimination. Their widespread presence across multiple provinces reflected growing public anger toward the policies of the Iranian regime.

Women teachers, nurses, retirees, and female university students were particularly prominent. Protests by retired educators evolved into a cohesive and sustained movement, continuing almost weekly in Tehran and several major cities. These demonstrations met with repression by security forces, including the use of pepper spray on January 20, 2025. Despite the crackdown, women consistently remained on the front lines, chanting, “Our rights are won only in the streets.”

➡️ Click here to read the full report

Source: wncri.org, Staff, January 5, 2026

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde

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