By Imran Mohd Rasid
(The article was initially published in Malay on January 13, 2026, at Pondok Siyasah)
I have always had a personal connection to Iran, and today it is in the middle of a number of political and economic problems.
As of this writing, mass protests in Iran have entered their third week. Internet access has been severed, communication infrastructure disabled (update: now the communication channel is back to normal), and casualties among demonstrators and security forces are reportedly mounting.
As of this writing, mass protests in Iran have entered their third week. Internet access has been severed, communication infrastructure disabled, and casualties among demonstrators and security forces are reportedly mounting.
There have been numerous chants calling for the abolition of the clerical-based administrative system (Ayatollah) that was established after the 1979 Revolution.
While monitoring the happenings in Iran, I reminded myself to exercise greater caution in following the news regarding the current situation there.
Both mainstream media (mostly controlled by Western conglomerates) and state-sponsored or state-owned Iranian media should be read with a pinch of salt.
For example, a semi-official report from Tasnim agency (Al Jazeera report) mentioned 109 security personnel killed. The number of demonstrator casualties is unknown (although some mainstream media have cited around 500 people but none are substantiated with clear evidence).
The reality is, information from and about Iran is now heavily filtered and blocked, and media from various parties are each trying to create their own narratives.
This includes Elon Musk himself, who recently changed the Iranian flag on platform X to the pre-1979 revolution version. (this should heighten our suspicions about the broader information warfare at play.).
These suspicions are warranted given substantial evidence of external interference, particularly from the United States and Israel—two leading practitioners of international violence and subversion.
Neither state conceals its objective: regime change favoring compliant elites aligned with Western imperial interests.
On January 2nd, Trump explicitly threatened Iranian authorities should repression of protests continue.
Days later, Mossad publicly encouraged Iranians to demonstrate: “Come out and take to the streets. The time has come. We are with you. Not just from afar and verbally. We are also with you on the ground.”
The Increasingly Chaotic Economy
Yet attributing these protests solely to external manipulation would be mistaken. Iran’s economic conditions are genuinely catastrophic, imposing severe hardships on ordinary Iranians.
The currency value plummeted (1.42 million rial = 1 USD). The Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, Mohammad Reza Farzin, reportedly resigned. When he was first appointed in 2022, the rial exchange rate was around 430,000 Rial = 1USD.
The situation worsened as Iran’s inflation has not recovered. Iran’s inflation rate in 2025 was around 41.6% (IMF), compared to 32.5% in 2024.
This devastates purchasing power, particularly affecting merchants dependent on imports from China, UAE, and Turkey.
Among Iran’s largest imports are food items, including grains (1.27 Billion USD), rice (737 million USD), and soybeans (1.24 billion USD). Rising import costs amplify inflationary pressures. Prolonged drought and water scarcity compound these stresses.
It’s important to recognize that the economic catastrophe reflects both internal failures and external assault. The Iranian government today indeed faces several critical problems of corruption and disgovernance.
Infrastructure ranks 98th globally, business sophistication 107th. Agricultural development has stagnated, exacerbated by the ongoing drought. Food security is precarious as reported by the Food Aid Organisation.
However, domestic failings do not explain the full picture. The myriads of problems cannot be blamed entirely on governance alone.
In reality, rial’s deterioration stems primarily from systematic Western economic warfare. Despite substantial oil reserves, the illegal sanctions imposed by the United States severely constrain Iran’s export markets.
The drop in oil prices has also impacted Iran’s economy; crude oil prices fell by 18% in 2025 to 60 USD per barrel, far lower than the 165 USD price Iran needs to avoid losses.
While sanctions were briefly eased under Obama’s nuclear agreement, Trump unilaterally withdrew in 2018, reimposing comprehensive economic strangulation.
Solidarity with the Iranian People, Beware of Imperialist Interference
The political and economic situation in Iran is certainly complex, particularly given documented foreign interference.
Nevertheless, solidarity with ordinary Iranians remains essential. Those who are suffering under various economic and political pressures, both from the Iranian regime itself and as a result of Western economic sanctions, deserve better.
These popular grievances deserve serious response. President Masoud Pezeshkian has acknowledged the need for fundamental reforms, which must be extracted through continued popular mobilization and civil society pressure.
Simultaneously, Iranians must remain vigilant against US and Israeli intervention. These imperialist regimes routinely manufacture chaos to advance geopolitical objectives, and may well attempt to capture and redirect authentic popular movements toward outcomes serving Western interests.
It remains crucial that Iran maintains its role challenging US imperial dominance internationally, especially concerning the ongoing genocide in Gaza and West Bank. But this can only happen when Iranian (not outsiders) popular voices and concerns are amplified and dignified, alongside other voices of the Global South.
