Hundreds of Thousands Rally in Iran in Show of Defiance Since War Started

Tehran: Hundreds of thousands of Iranians took part in a government-organised rally in Tehran on Friday, pledging to defend the country and volunteering for limited military training in the largest such mobilisation since the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran in February.

The rally was part of an effort by Iran's leadership to project national unity after months of war, even as the country faces mounting economic pressure from US sanctions and a naval blockade affecting Iranian ports.

The volunteers, participating in a campaign known as “Janfaday-e Iran,” or those willing to sacrifice their lives for Iran, marched through central Tehran in military-style uniforms and carried Iranian flags. State media had spent days urging people to register, with training involving assault rifles expected to begin soon.

Tehran's Revolutionary Guard commander, Gen. Hassan Hassanzadeh, said more than 600,000 people had registered for the initiative and that the number could exceed one million once training begins. State television estimated that more than 300,000 people had gathered in Tehran on Friday.

The new head of the Basij, Hossein Taeb, said the volunteers would be prepared for what he described as “full-fledged defense” and indicated that similar rallies would be held in other Iranian cities.

The mobilisation comes amid concerns within Iran's leadership over the possibility of renewed domestic unrest. The country experienced some of its largest nationwide protests in January, initially triggered by economic difficulties before expanding into broader opposition to the theocratic government.

Activists have alleged that more than 7,000 people were killed and tens of thousands detained during the subsequent crackdown. In September 2022, death of 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini triggered a series of protests all over the country. The protests were one of the biggest political crises in Iran since the revolution of 1979.