Fox News: Iran opposition claims protesters took control of two western cities

Iran's so-called Parliament-in-Exile, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), has claimed the cities of Abdanan (Ilam province) and Malekshahi were effectively "taken over" by protesters.

"Today there was a major development in two cities in Western Iran that have been effectively taken over and people are actually celebrating in the streets," Ali Safavi, the NCRI member, told Fox News Digital, as per Caliber.Az.

"They were chanting, ‘Death to Khamenei!’"

"Despite everything the regime has done, the fear factor seems to have shifted because people have made the suppressive forces flee," Safavi added.

Maryam Rajavi, NCRI president-elect, also shared a post on X saluting the protesters in Malakshahi and Abdanan, who she said, "drove the regime's enforcers into retreat."

Demonstrations, strikes and street gatherings have also been reported across dozens of cities in multiple provinces.

In Ilam province, witnesses and rights groups reported that tear gas was fired inside Imam Khomeini Hospital as authorities attempted to arrest wounded protesters transferred from nearby towns, according to reports.

Amnesty International said on January 6, "The Iranian security forces’ attack on a hospital in Ilam, where injured protesters are seeking medical care or shelter, violates international law."

Similar accounts emerged from Tehran, where security forces were reportedly seen entering Sina Hospital, prompting fear among patients and families.

According to earlier reports, parts of Tehran’s Grand Bazaar and major commercial centres in Mashhad were also partially or fully closed.

"What makes the 2025 protests different to before is that the knife has reached the bone for Iranian citizens," Safavi continued.

"People feel they have nothing anymore and have reached a breaking point," he added.

Demonstrations began in the capital, Tehran, on December 28 and have since spread to over 257 locations in 27 of Iran's 31 provinces, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

Protests began with a strike by shopkeepers and merchants in Tehran's historic Grand Bazaar, sparked by the sharp decline of the Iranian rial (exceeding 40% inflation) and plummeting purchasing power.

According to Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRAI) and its media project HRANA, at least 35 people have been killed over nine days of protests, while more than 1,200 participants have been arrested. Among the dead are 29 protesters, four children, and two members of the security forces, rights activists say.

By Khagan Isayev