Ending Iran’s regime won’t be easy

Protests have rocked the Islamic Republic of Iran with increasing frequency for the past quarter-century, but the closure of the Tehran bazaar on Dec. 28, 2025, was different. The market in central Tehran traditionally represents the financial lungs of the Iranian economy. It is not a tourist market as are the souks in Cairo, Jerusalem, or Istanbul, but rather a dense labyrinth of shops and stalls spread out over more than 6 miles of streets and alleys. Outside a few sanitized areas where foreign tourists visit, the dense area is characterized by tin roofs, crumbling brick, and gerrymandered wiring.

Its importance in Iranian history is outsize. In 1905, Iran’s Constitutional Revolution began with a strike at the Tehran bazaar. In 1952 and 1953, strikes in