Iranian women are intensifying their protests against the country’s authoritarian system, moving beyond symbolic gestures like cutting their hair or burning headscarves toward more confrontational forms of dissent. Recent demonstrations have included burning images of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, often combined with acts that challenge social restrictions imposed on women.

In November 2025, Omid Sarlak, a young man from western Iran, posted a video showing himself setting fire to a portrait of Khamenei. Hours later, his body was found in his car with a gunshot wound to the head. That same month, Samad Pourshah, a former political prisoner, performed a similar protest, burning the leader’s photograph to denounce Sarlak’s death. Security forces raided his home shortly after, but he was not present and has remained in hiding since.

The Iranian regime has repeatedly cracked down on such acts. In 2021, poet Qasem Bahrami was arrested in Mashhad after burning a portrait of Khamenei. He was held incommunicado for two months. Despite these threats, women’s protests have grown more visible and defiant, often using the act of burning the ayatollah’s image to light cigarettes—a challenge to both political authority and societal restrictions on women’s behavior. Videos of these protests have circulated widely on social media, making containment by authorities increasingly difficult.

The movement traces its origins to the 2022 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in detention after allegedly violating hijab regulations. Her death sparked mass protests, known as the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, which were violently suppressed. More than 500 people were killed and over 19,400 arrested during the four-month crackdown. Despite the repression, women continued to resist through symbolic public acts.

In recent years, these acts have become increasingly bold. Women have appeared without hijabs in public spaces, knocked turbans off clerics, participated in sporting events without headscarves, and performed public demonstrations of nudity, including instances atop police vehicles. Protest participation spans all ages, including schoolgirls, highlighting the generational reach of the movement.

A separate dimension of protest has emerged through mass poisoning incidents in schools. Investigations revealed that more than 800 students in at least 15 cities were poisoned in 2023, causing widespread illness. The government denied involvement, and the perpetrators were never identified. Officials initially suggested the incidents aimed to close girls’ schools but later retracted these statements.

Analysts say Iranian women’s protests reflect a combination of resistance to political repression and defiance of deeply rooted social restrictions. By adopting highly visible and symbolic acts, they continue to push for freedom and equal rights despite the persistent threat of government violence. The movement has gained international attention, with videos circulating globally, underscoring the resilience of women’s activism in Iran.