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Iranian students at several universities staged anti-regime protests on the first day of the new academic semester, clashing with pro-government groups on campus as public anger towards the Islamic republic persists after last month’s deadly unrest.
Students at the prestigious Amirkabir University of Technology and Sharif University of Technology, located in central and western Tehran respectively, on Saturday gathered on campus chanting slogans against the regime and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The protests come amid heightened tensions with the US. Washington has built up one of its largest military forces in the Middle East since the 2003 Iraq war, leaving many Iranians fearing the prospect of war.
On Thursday, US President Donald Trump warned Tehran to reach a deal within a “maximum” of 15 days or face unspecified consequences.
Videos circulating on social media show anti-regime students marching on campuses, which security forces are generally restricted from entering.
In one video from Sharif university, opposing groups faced off across a courtyard. Pro-regime students waved Iranian flags and chanted “Heydar, Heydar” — a Shia religious reference associated by supporters with Khamenei’s leadership and their willingness to defend him.
Anti-regime demonstrators responded with chants of “Long live the Shah”, a reference to Reza Pahlavi, the son of the monarch ousted in the 1979 revolution who has promised to return to Iran and help Iranians with a transition of power.
Other footage showed clashes between the two sides.
Iran’s universities have long served as hubs of political activism and pro-democracy movements.
Students were prominently involved in the 2022 “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests, which led to widespread arrests and the suspension or expulsion of hundreds of students and university professors.
President Masoud Pezeshkian’s government has said that many students and professors caught up in the protests have since returned to their studies and pledged to avoid a repeat of the mass arrests. Authorities traditionally fear that campus unrest could spill into broader street demonstrations.
The semi-official Fars news agency, which is close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported that some chants in universities included “death to the dictator” and pro-monarchy slogans.
It said that a memorial at Sharif university had been intended as a peaceful ceremony but alleged that “several people wearing face masks guided the crowd in a specific direction”.
Similar gatherings took place at the University of Tehran, it added. The agency said pro-regime students objected to what they described as violations of the Ramadan ban on eating and drinking in public.
Videos on social media showed students at Amirkabir university chanting: “This fallen flower is devoted to the homeland”, a reference to those killed in protests who have been dubbed “Eternal Names” rather than the religious term “martyrs”.
At Shahid Beheshti University in northern Tehran, students held up placards demanding the release of detained classmates.
In Mashhad, students at the local university called for “freedom”.
Dissent has intensified following last month’s protests, which began over economic grievances and spread to 400 towns and cities, according to official figures. Authorities say 3,117 people were killed, the deadliest episode of unrest in the country’s modern history.
Foreign human rights organisations claim the death toll is significantly higher, with Trump saying on Friday that 32,000 protesters had been killed. Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi called on the US president to provide evidence for the claim.
In recent days mourning ceremonies have been held to mark 40 days since the protesters’ deaths — a significant time under Iranian tradition.
In many viral videos on social media, mourners departed from customary rituals, replacing black attire with white clothing, releasing white pigeons and balloons and incorporating music, singing and dancing more typical of celebratory events. At larger gatherings, anti-government slogans were chanted.
The convergence of domestic unrest and mounting external pressure has unsettled the Islamic republic in an unprecedented manner.
Iranian authorities say they are prepared for the possibility of conflict, but they also maintain that they are seeking a diplomatic agreement with the US over their nuclear programme, while rejecting any discussions on their missile programme.
