Link: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/feb/23/classrooms-empty-graveyards-full-iran-students-why-protesting-again

As details of the death toll for January’s protests continue to emerge, three students explain why they are resisting a return to normality

More than 45 days after a brutal January crackdown that left thousands of Iranian protesters dead, students across several universities are protesting again. As Iran’s new academic term began on Saturday, students in Tehran gathered on campus, chanting anti-government slogans, despite a heavy security presence and plainclothes officers stationed outside university gates.

The Guardian spoke to protesting students about why they were rallying despite the fact that thousands had been killed and tens of thousands arrested in the January demonstrations.

“Our classrooms are empty because the graveyards are full,” said Hossein*, 21, a student at the University of Tehran. “It’s for them – our friends, classmates and compatriots, who were gunned down in front of our eyes, that we decided to boycott the classes.”

After 40 days, as expected. Trump now has his public excuse to attack. I don't know what to think of all this.

William Spaniel, Lines on Maps on YouTube, tried to break it down in a couple of videos.

Why is it the responsibility of the US? I'm old enough to remember being (rightfully) shunned for doing the same fucking shit in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Disgusting sentiment

The US killed 500k children in Iraq and when asked about it our political leadership said they would do it again because it was worth it

The AI generated protest images are pretty spot on as well

Why did the US invade Afghanistan? Why did they invade Iraq?

Do you believe the US is considering a ground invasion of Iran?

(ps I don't advocate it's their responsibility, mainly arguing about opposing any intervention)

As an American I've long supported assisting rebels, but going to war is just as likely to backfire as it is to succeed.

The protests are good and justified, all power to the Iranian people. Iran deserves a second revolution, after the first one was taken over by the Mullahs for their own goals.

But it's genuinely disheartening how readily nominally progressive spaces are jumping abord the manufactured consent for an imperialist military intervention by Israel and the US.

How, exactly, will bombing Iranian cities help their liberation? Or even if they succeed with deposing the Mullah regime, is anyone really expecting self determination by the Iranian people afterwards? We're seen how the Shar's son is pushed as the next US puppet government by US- and Israeli media (and their European allies).

The Iranian people, not just the current regime, are supportive of Palestine, and Israel and the US absolutely cannot accept that. Don't cheer for imperialist intervention.

Why are you referring to the US's treatment of its own citizens when its entire history has been the history of limiting its definition of "in-group" so that it can commit mass murder of everyone else? Why not refer to the US treatment of the country's inhabitants, like the indigenous populations, the migrant workers, the asylum seekers?

By limiting your frame to only the predominantly white, predominantly "middle class", you are playing into the narrative that allows the US to go around killing millions. Because you think the US is not as bad as Iran, you create the political conditions for the US to be considered a legitimate nation with real interests and intentions that matter. The truth is that the US is built on genocide and slavery, has always been built on genocide and slavery, and continues to engage in genocide and slavery. The US is far and away worse than Iran.

What? You don't believe "Hossein, 21", they named him and everything! You want to see actual evidence! You can't believe that I'm 2026 not a single person recorded a video of said massacres on their phone?

Well you can give the small arms but then they're up against an advanced military. They basically don't stand a chance without at least air support

If you let them get nukes it's basically game over

So you're arguing that some interventions by the US that led to hundreds of thousands or millions of civilian deaths, long-term cancer and birth defects, total destruction of civilian infrastructure, and decades of neocolonial extraction are somehow justifiable?

The US does that when it wants to create a civil war where previously there was no civil war. Civil wars are great for neocolonial intervention. You pump arms into the weaker side. They start killing. The whole defense complex now has to manage its existing counter-intelligence program against the US but now they also have an active hot conflict domestically. Lots of military-capable people die. Then the neocolonial empire comes in once the chaos has weakened everyone and they save the day!

How do we improve things for the people of Iran?

Well, your copypaste doesn't really say what you say it does but, yeah, even if that was the case how does it help the people of Iran?

Fuck the Mullah dictatorship!!!

It is a terrible situation for everyone.

It's insane. Gaza is over two years of bombing turning it into a parking lot. Like, many people have been killed in Iran during the recent months. It's just gross to report numbers that are not physically possible.

I saw one report that MORE than 80,000 in 2 days. The last time that many people died in such a short amount of time was when we dropped two nuclear weapons on Japan. Did Iran nuke itself? Like, how can anyone print that number?

Not to mention, the solution to this is apparently for the US and Israel to do exactly what Israel did to Gaza to Iran.

Edit: Everyone just purposely misunderstanding my comment below.

(1) I never said or implied the 80k number was from a credible source.

(2) I sure as hell never said it was the guardian.

(3) Pointing to "more" credible sources on the numbers is not related to my comment. All sources at this point are SIGNIFICANTLY less credible than the very conservative "Hamas Run Health" numbers that all of you libs discredited for over a year. Stop getting excited at death tolls that, at this point, only serve to justify MORE death at the hands of US intervention.

(4) Any number printed by western media or it's organizations should be questioned BECAUSE of their aligned interest with Israel and the interest of American Imperialism. Iran is NOT a US Ally like Israel. Any coverage of its REAL human rights violations will be reported in the same way it would Hamas.

(5) The Iranian people are my concern. The people using "death tolls" to further US intervention are the same idiots that would have supported the invasion of Iraq. And yes, this includes the "sources" inside Iran begging Trump to come bomb their country with freedom.

I was literally simply saying that at the time of the protests and Internet blackouts that the media went spreading unverified numbers to grab clicks. One of which had it as high as 80k. A number spread on social media and printed as a "some say" in garbage outlets that just wanted to get clicks for numbers.

I provided two sources of this bogus claim below. And I never meant it more than a comment about how false information spreads online. Especially when it favors the narrative of a demented old man we call a president.

Fucking liberals are are so war hungry that they are more focused on nitpicking a comment critizing the spread of pro war propaganda that they'll be upset when you point it out.

I was in the same spot in 2023 trying to explain what lead to October 7th. In 2-3 years maybe you'll understand why you should be critical of any reports and justifications for US intervention. Whether that number is 20k or 80k. You're missing the fucking point.

DOES USA INTERVENTION MAKE IRANIANS LIVES BETTER?

Iraq and many other countries can tell you that answer.

There's no civil war because the Iranian regime kills everyone that poses a threat. People are taking to the streets to demand basic rights and they get shot in the head by the thousands.

How do you suggest the Iranian people get out of this situation?

Am I?

By coming together with their government to defeat the imperialists?

I [am] mainly arguing about opposing any intervention

It ABSOLUTELY says what I say it says.

There aren't too many sentences there. You can do this.

I get where you're clumsily aiming at but the current situation is what it is. The Iranian people don't gain shit when we limit ourselves to reciting history to eachother

Again, I ask, why does the responsibility always default to the US? Why?

We don't. Stop being a chauvinist. The Iranian people, together, improve things for themselves. Our responsibility is to dismantle the Western imperialist machine that has killed almost 40 million people in the last 50 years through sanctions alone

I think most people are hoping for an attack on military targets like last year. No-one is calling for "bombing cities". That's a tankie fantasy. A fantankasy

Where did you get that report? Most I saw was 30k over 3 weeks

Why would I need to dismantle the Western machine and not the Iranian one?

Responsibility?

Start shooting protestors and hanging gays?

Because you don't live in Iran and it's not your responsibility. Your responsibility, depending on where you live, is to dismantle the closest link to you in the chains that hold the world in imperial bondage, which is the Western machine helmed by the USA.

Find and expose the foreign spies operating in Iran, continue to advocate on the world stage for the end to the crimes against humanity that are the collective punishment of sanctions, and engage in mutual aid to reduce the suffering caused by the crimes against humanity that are the collective punishment of sanctions.

What they shouldn't do is align their interests with the US and Israel for the violent overthrow of the anti-imperialist Iranian government.

To be clear. I wasn't saying it was credible.

https://x.com/i/status/2014484450315293173

This was the one going around at the time I was talking about. I know there were articles at the time citing this as evidence as well. But, it looks like that's been purged from most articles.

I know that number was spoken on Fox News as well at some point. But I'd have to dig for the clip. Just the usual, "some reports saying as high as 80,000" vague propaganda from a guest interview.

That's literally how eastern Germany got rid of their government. And yes, people got killed. But in the end they succeed. There was absolutely no chance for a violent coup if this is what you're implying. The government and the Soviet Union would have crushed that immediately.

Why would these be exclusive?

Yeah but what if you want to help your government to 'expose the spies' and they tell you to go hang some gays first? Do you side with teh empire or hang the gays?

Ok but you said you saw a report and now you're linking me a tweet

Can you link us the actual report?

Fun thought experiment but the government is not asking average citizens to hang gay people.

But even if they did. The answer is you never side with the empire and you become a conscientious objector for anything you believe you should not do but are ordered to do. Conscientious objectors are not traitors. People who side with the empire are.

Because toppling the Iranian government is aligned with empire's goals and creates positive reinforcing outcomes for the empire. So either you fight the empire and frustrate its goals in Iran, or you support the empir by bringing about its goals in Iran even if your heart is pure.