What's the Iranian left saying about the mass protests?

They're backing mass protests while condemning US and Israeli intervention

Mass protests are currently sweeping Iran, originally sparked by widespread fury at the disastrous economic situation there.

But those protests have swelled in size and include growing demands for the overthrow of the Islamic Republic. At the same time, Donald Trump has threatened to bomb Iran again - and the threat of a renewed Israeli military onslaught hangs over Iran.

Depressingly, some of the protesters are supporting Reza Pahlavi - the son of the Shah of Iran, who was deposed by the Islamic Revolution of 1979. The Shah was himself imposed after the US and British secret services orchestrated a coup against the progressive government of Mohammad Mosaddegh was overthrown in 1953. His brutal regime fuelled the mass disillusionment which led to the revolution in the first place.

Pahlavi has been loudly demanding his supporters take to the streets. If he comes to power, one dictatorship will be replaced by another. It will be a pro-US regime, and given the complex ethnic, religious and political divisions in Iran, that plausibly threatens huge bloodshed and even civil war.

But what are the Iranian left saying?

The biggest left-wing party is Tudeh - that is, Iran’s communist party, which was violently suppressed by the Islamic Republic in the 1980s.

Their first statement, issued on 30th December, is headed:

“Widespread popular protests are a renewed beginning for challenging religious–capitalist despotism and for liberating the homeland from deprivation, poverty, corruption, and the anti-people rule of the Islamic Republic!”

It speaks of a popular uprising driven by “the rapid surge in the prices of foreign currencies and gold coins”, and celebrating the chant ‘Death to the dictator’, which they say “shook the foundations of the ruling despotic regime”.

They refer to workers organising protests and strikes, including employees of the Kangan Petro-Refinery over unpaid wages, and the Union of Truckers’ Associations and Drivers of Iran who expressed “serious concern over the chaotic economic conditions, mounting pressure on the market, and the critical livelihood situation of drivers.”

They add:

The main roots of the current protests must be sought in the disastrous socio-economic policies of the Velayat-e Faqih regime: the unprecedented intensification of poverty, inflation exceeding 40 percent, the sharp devaluation of the national currency, the uncontrolled rise in foreign exchange prices, declining purchasing power of citizens, widespread corruption and rent-seeking, and the continuation of inhumane sanctions imposed by U.S. imperialism and its allies.

The political system ruling our homeland—namely the absolute guardianship of Ali Khamenei—is irreformable. Relying on extensive military and security structures, this government has openly and violently violated the people’s rights and authority to determine their own destiny. Without moving beyond this regime of religious despotism and big-capital rule, there can be no hope for improving current conditions, easing economic pressures, reducing poverty and deprivation, resolving electricity and water shortages, or ending the violent and bloody wave of repression against freedoms and democratic rights.

This dictatorship has not only dragged Iran and its society to the brink of collapse and destruction, but has also exposed the country to the serious and repeated danger of foreign intervention and the replacement of the current despotism with another decayed form of tyranny—one dominated by servants of U.S. imperialism and the genocidal Israeli government.

They demand solidarity among different social groups “from workers, laborers, and retirees to women, students, youth, and merchants—against the aggressive policies of this regime, and efforts to organize coordinated, nationwide protest movements, can lay the groundwork for seriously challenging the regime and opening the path toward fundamental and democratic transformations.”

They conclude:

We continue to believe that all progressive and freedom-seeking forces in the country—from the left and nationalist forces to national–religious groups, as well as individuals and forces that have moved beyond the policy of preserving the “system” and the current government—must join hands and play an important and effective role in organizing today’s mass protests in Iran.

Their second statement, issued 2nd January 2026, is headlined:

“We unequivocally condemn any intervention by U.S. imperialism, the genocidal Israeli state, and their domestic accomplices in the sensitive developments of our country!”

Again, they describe a “new wave of popular protest demonstrations” sparked by “the country’s unbearable socio-economic conditions”. They note the state’s violent repression, and add:

The Tudeh Party of Iran considers the people’s protests against the inhumane prevailing conditions—especially the current crushing economic and livelihood situation—to be just and lawful. From the very beginning, in unison with other national and democratic forces in the country, we have supported the expansion and deepening of these popular protests, while at the same time calling for the preservation of calm, the continuation of civil forms of protest, and the Islamic Republic’s compliance with the people’s rightful demands.

But while siding with “the majority of society’s revulsion toward the ruling Islamist dictatorship”, they denounce the intervention of “the quasi-fascist government of Donald Trump” - specifically his threat to bomb Iran.

They say:

This stance is a blatant attempt to interfere in Iran’s internal developments, particularly when the regime of Velayat-e Faqih is utterly incapable of extricating itself from crisis, instability, and constant fear of the people, and seeks to prolong its survival solely through repression and military-security apparatuses.

U.S. imperialist interference in the internal affairs of our homeland constitutes a clear violation of Iran’s national sovereignty and serves only to secure imperialist interests in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf. Another crucial point is that, given the policies of Trump’s far-right government and its full alignment with the criminal and genocidal government of Netanyahu, which stands at the helm of Israel’s war machine, any intervention in Iran’s internal affairs is not only manifestly harmful to the popular uprising against the Islamic Republic, but could also bring catastrophic consequences for the country.

The Tudeh Party “explicitly and resolutely condemns the overt intervention of U.S. imperialism and its regional and domestic allies in Iran’s internal affairs”, while also denouncing the disastrous policies of the dictatorship.

They note the “shameful coup” of 1953, and “that the policy of “regime change” has always been pursued to serve the strategic interests of global imperialism and can never lead to freedom, the realization of national and democratic rights, or the people’s sovereignty over their own destiny.”

They assert that the mass movement does not need the assistance of the “quasi-fascist” US governemnt in order to succeed, and concludes:

“Forward toward unity and solidarity of the Iranian people in the struggle against the regime of Velayat-e Faqih

Long live peace; long live the struggle of Iran’s toiling and long-suffering people.”

It is very depressing to watch political turmoil in which the main actors are all abhorrent. That’s why it’s important to listen to the Iranian left - and I’ll be trying to share their positions as best I can.