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Protests in Iran, day 24: State of emergency. 250 mosques have been destroyed

By: Arnt Jensvoll   21. January 2026, 07:00

There are rumours that protests are flaring up again in Iran and that the regime is deploying special forces against its own people, but this appears to be limited to “isolated incidents”. Tensions remain high, with sporadic clashes and reports of a high level of preparedness with security forces deployed to prevent further mobilisation. The regime claims that “calm has been restored” but maintains a de facto state of war with heavily armed forces in the streets to prevent new outbreaks. According to a statement from the regime, 250 mosques have been destroyed.

The regime’s focus is turned towards investigation and punishment: The police chief has given “insurgents” three days to surrender for lenient punishment, while new arrests continue in provinces such as Kerman, Isfahan and Shiraz.

Many are hoping that what is rumoured today will be a reality tomorrow

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Videos and reports continue to show confrontations in Tehran, Dehdasht and Kurdish regions. New videos dated 18-19 January show live ammunition being fired at protesters, but some are undoubtedly recycled video footage from previous incidents.

An official representative of the Ministry of the Interior is “jumped off” and calls on Trump to intervene. He describes the situation as a “de facto state of emergency.”</p

The regime has suppressed the protests and is waiting for the international attention to subside. It is using the internet shutdown to hide the abuses, continuing arrests and planning executions while signalling “clemency” to divide or appease the opposition.

The Iranians have learned through bitter experience that when executions are “postponed”, it does not mean they are cancelled: they are carried out in silence, without international attention.

A weakened regime

The regime is weakened both economically and politically, but loyal forces are holding it up. They are counting on time working in their favour, provided they avoid escalation.

– Iran has just deployed armoured Basij units and anti-terrorist forces across the country. These are the same Basij forces that brutally suppressed uprisings in the past.

When they bring out armoured vehicles, they expect something to be going on.

A wave of defections is reported in the Revolutionary Guard and Basij, as the US prepares for a possible attack.

There are also rumours of a possible military coup. Many are probably hoping that what is rumoured today will be a reality tomorrow. Imtiaz Mahmood claims that the IRGC is turning against the mullah regime.

The regime has reportedly entered a phase of tightening discipline within the police and security forces. Several sources claim that defectors are being executed.

– On 8 January 2026, Javid Khales, a young police soldier, was allegedly ordered to shoot protesters. He chose his conscience and refused. He was immediately arrested and transferred to Isfahan Central Prison, where he has reportedly been sentenced to death.

This is probably happening on a much larger scale than we realise. When members of the regime’s own forces refuse to obey orders to kill their own, the Islamic Republic uses executions as a warning: Kill or be killed.

Funerals are said to be a new arena for isolated protests. Here, the lion and sun flags are raised during the funeral of a young man murdered by the regime.

13 protesters will be hanged.

Government security forces interrogate a frightened teenage boy.

– Interviewer: Do you have a satellite dish at home?
Boy: No, I swear to God.

Do you know Reza Shah?
No, I don’t. I know his son.

Do you know his son?

Do you know his son? What’s his name?
Javid.

 

“We have officially initiated a trial against Trump and we will make sure that he is brought to justice and pays for his crimes,” said Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, head of the Iranian judiciary.
<“The regime has been emboldened by what it perceives as weakness on the part of the US. They will soon know better.

The regime is making good money on the killing spree.

When the Islamic Republic executes a person, it demands around 700 million tomans (roughly $5,000) from the family as “ransom” for handing over the body. If not, the body is buried in a mass grave.

– 250 mosques vandalised

The regime blames “agents of the United States and the Zionists” for committing “heinous crimes” during the uprising.

– President Trump has launched “MIGA” (Make Iran Great Again) and warned that the US is “ready to intervene” if the “senseless killings” do not stop. He has cancelled all diplomatic meetings with the Iranian authorities and stated that the regime “rules through violence”.

The regime is using the threat of US intervention to confirm its narrative of “foreign agents”. They claim that they are not killing citizens, but “American-Zionist terrorists”.

– They vandalised 250 mosques and over 250 education and science centres. They destroyed power grids, banks and health institutions. They killed thousands of people.

Iranian citizens, at the request of the crown prince, have created a web page where they identify people linked to the regime.

Tehran’s mayor Alireza Zakani claims that at least 61 mosques have been burned down in the capital alone (later adjusted to 30-34 by the fire brigade), while a senior mullah has claimed that 350 mosques + 126 prayer rooms have been damaged on a national basis.

The moral collapse of the left

– The Iranian uprising is a difficult dilemma for the left, which is openly pro-Western, unapologetically secular and explicitly hostile to political Islam. There is no “exotic victim” to romanticise, no anti-American slogans to recycle, no historical colonial “guilt” to exploit. Which is precisely why it reveals how selective all this proclaimed solidarity really is.

– US and Israel bring France on board

– The US is moving military equipment to the Gulf region on a scale not seen since the war against Iraq in 2003. A US aircraft carrier is on its way to the Gulf region. Estimated time of arrival is Saturday 24 January at 16:00. Don’t expect action before then. Unconfirmed reports indicate that France will join the US and that the French air force has also begun to deploy military equipment to the Gulf region. Israel’s military chief announced yesterday that they are ready for action.

The CIA and Mossad are working to liberate the Iranian people, but each step must be well planned. The operation cannot and will not fail. It would make no sense simply to remove or kill the leadership and allow the IRGC to establish a military regime. The attack on the mullahs’ regime must be so decisive that they cannot rise again.

The aircraft carrier “Lincoln” has switched off its tracking device. It is expected to arrive at CENTCOM’s area of responsibility within the next 72 hours.

The Iranian people have not been intimidated by the massacre. On the contrary, they are braver than ever. Everyone is waiting for a new opportunity to put an end to the Islamic Republic. The national anger that existed before the protests has now turned into national hatred of the regime. Everyone believes that the mullahs will be overthrown.

Iran protests, day 23: – Islam has collapsed

PS. Did you catch this?

Iran wasn’t always Islamic

PPS. Dr Linge in the comments section pointed out in the previous Iran update that the image in a tweet was AI-generated. He’s obviously right. We will try to sharpen up. What comes from Iran as true today, can be lies and untruths tomorrow. And vice versa.

 

Buy “Islamic Fascism” by Hamed Abdel-Samad from Document Forlag!

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