Iranians rally in biggest show of defiance against US since war began

What Happened

On Friday, the Iranian government staged a rally in downtown Tehran for the new Janfada-ye-Iran volunteer force, with Iranian authorities claiming 313,000 participants — a figure Al Jazeera reported could not be independently verified. President Masoud Pezeshkian and Basij head Hossein Taeb attended. Tehran's IRGC chief, Hassan Hassanzadeh, told state broadcaster IRIB that over 600,000 people had registered for the campaign, with over one million expected to take part in training. Volunteers, including women and teenagers, marched in combat uniforms, some carrying flags and weapons, while the government displayed drones, anti-aircraft batteries and other weaponry.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The volunteer mobilization allows the Iranian leadership to claim broad popular backing and frame itself as a defender against external attack at a time of US-Israeli strikes, a US naval blockade, and economic grievances that fueled deadly protests in December. It also signals a potential expansion of the IRGC-linked paramilitary base beyond the Basij, with training of civilians including women and teenagers, which could alter internal security dynamics and raise the human cost of any future conflict.

Watch For

Watch whether the claimed 30 million registrations translate into actual trained and equipped units, whether the one million participants complete the limited military and emergency training as announced by IRGC chief Hassan Hassanzadeh, and whether Taeb's promise of 'full-fledged defence' leads to deployment of volunteers in any confrontation. Also monitor further US sanctions enforcement against digital currency networks and Iranian responses to the naval blockade or US-Israeli strikes, as well as any renewed domestic protests over economic conditions.