'People couldn't breathe': Protester describes chaos in Tehran as death toll rises

At least 29 people killed in demonstrations that show no sign of stopping as US attack on Venezuela stokes fears among Iran's ruling elite

The death toll from protests across Iran has risen to at least 29, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said, as demonstrations over economic woes show no signs of stopping.

A protester on Tuesday described to The National chaotic scenes as demonstrations erupted in the centre of Tehran, beginning near the capital's Grand Bazaar.

“Around the Bazaar, many of us come to these demonstrations from other parts of the city when we hear they are happening. They [government forces] tried to use real weapons, real bullets,” said the protester, who asked not to be identified.

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“Today they used Kalashnikovs and other weapons. They attacked people, and before protesters could reach the subway station [Panzdah-e-Khordad], they threw tear gas inside.

"There were sick people there, children, and even people who were not protesting, who had gone into the station to avoid encountering the police.”

Security forces then entered the metro station.

“They got inside the station and that was horrible. You know, it's a closed space. It's isolated and people couldn't breathe. That is really horrible," the protester said.

The rights group, which relies on an activist network in Iran and has provided accurate figures during previous episodes of unrest, said four children and two members of Iran's security forces had been killed. Protests have been recorded across 27 of Iran's 31 provinces, it added.

The National reported on Sunday that 15 people had been killed since the protests began.

The unrest began a week ago when the Iranian rial fell to a record low against the US dollar. Authorities have attempted a dual approach to the protests – acknowledging the economic crisis and offering dialogue with demonstrators, while meeting more forceful displays of dissent with violence.

“The economy is the trigger. Last time it was women’s clothing — the hijab issue — that was the trigger. We don’t want these people at all," said the protester.

“How can we have even the tiniest chance to live under these conditions? What kind of people could want them? They are brutal, angry, inhuman. We don’t want them. We never wanted them. We don’t want them at all.”

Iran’s security and intelligence agencies said they detained several people accused of “links to foreign-based opposition groups” and trying to incite unrest under the cover of protests.

About 250 police officers and 45 members of the Basij, a volunteer paramilitary group, were injured during the protests, said the Fars news agency, which is affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The current protests do not match the scale of unrest that swept the nation from 2022 to 2023 after Mahsa Amini died in the custody of Iran's morality police.

But even if the demonstrations are smaller, they have quickly expanded from an economic focus to broader frustrations, with some protesters chanting “Down with the Islamic Republic” or “Death to the dictator” – a reference to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in all state matters.

The protester said the demonstrations were spreading across the capital. “I also have heard that the demonstrations have reached to Tupuna Square or Imam Square or to the Azari Junction, which is west-south of Tehran. And it is going to be bigger now,” the protester added.

“It is very, very dangerous now.”

Iran is still reeling from its war with Israel in June last year and US strikes on its nuclear sites. The protests have also taken place as US President Donald Trump's administration attacked Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro, a Tehran ally.

US President Donald Trump with a cap bearing the phrase 'Make Iran Great Again', alongside senator Lindsey Graham. Photo: @LindseyGrahamSC

Events in Venezuela may have increased anxiety among Iran's leadership that the country could face a resumption of hostilities with the US, especially as nuclear talks have faltered.

“These twin pressures have narrowed Tehran's room for manoeuvre, leaving leaders caught between public anger on the streets and hardening demands and threats from Washington, with few viable options and high risks on every path,” an Iranian official told Reuters about the protests and the situation in Latin America.

That view was echoed by ‌two other officials and a former Iranian official close to the country's decision makers.

One official said that, after ‍the US action in Venezuela, some of the authorities in Iran fear the country could be “the ‍next victim of Trump's aggressive foreign policy”. Mr Trump has warned that Iran would be “hit very hard” if more protesters died.