Campus demonstrations erupted at multiple Iranian universities Saturday as students returned for the start of their new academic semester, with some encounters turning violent between protesters and government supporters, according to local media reports and social media documentation.
The university unrest took place during traditional memorial services held 40 days after deaths, honoring victims killed by government security personnel during January’s widespread anti-regime demonstrations. Those protests represented the most significant domestic upheaval Iran has experienced since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, resulting in thousands of casualties.
Footage allegedly captured demonstrators at Tehran’s Sharif University of Technology marching in formation while denouncing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a “murderous leader” and advocating for Reza Pahlavi, the former shah’s exiled heir, to assume leadership as monarch.
Government-aligned news outlets including SNN broadcast footage showing confrontations where demonstrators reportedly injured volunteer student Basij militia members by hurling stones at the prestigious engineering institution. These pro-government Basij forces frequently support security personnel during protest suppression efforts.
Additional demonstrations occurred at Beheshti and Amir Kabir universities in Tehran, as well as Mashhad University in northeastern Iran, based on footage released by rights organization HAALVSH, though Reuters was unable to independently confirm these reports.
In Abdanan, a western community that has been a focal point for demonstrations, protesters shouted “Death to Khamenei” and “Death to the dictator” following the detention of an activist educator, as documented by rights group Hengaw and social media accounts.
