February11, 2026
Ashley Smith - Houshang Sepehr
The Iranian regime has faced down a wave of mass protest. Merchants, students, workers, and national minorities joined huge demonstrations throughout the country against economic conditions and state repression. The regime has responded with the utmost brutality, killing between a low estimate of 6,000 people and a high of 30,000. This has for the moment repressed the struggle. But the conditions that triggered it remain unresolved. Meanwhile, Trump has assembled an armada in the region, threatening to attack the regime. Tempest’s Ashley Smith interviews Houshang Sepehr, editor of the website, Solidarité Socialiste avec les Travailleurs en Iran, about the roots of the uprising, the response of the state, the role of U.S. imperialism, and the trajectory of the struggle.
Ashley Smith - Houshang Sepehr
The Iranian regime has faced down a wave of mass protest. Merchants, students, workers, and national minorities joined huge demonstrations throughout the country against economic conditions and state repression. The regime has responded with the utmost brutality, killing between a low estimate of 6,000 people and a high of 30,000. This has for the moment repressed the struggle. But the conditions that triggered it remain unresolved. Meanwhile, Trump has assembled an armada in the region, threatening to attack the regime. Tempest’s Ashley Smith interviews Houshang Sepehr, editor of the website, Solidarité Socialiste avec les Travailleurs en Iran, about the roots of the uprising, the response of the state, the role of U.S. imperialism, and the trajectory of the struggle.