Thousands of contract workers at the South Pars gas complex in southern Iran held a large protest on Tuesday demanding better working conditions, fair pay, and the removal of private labor contractors, Iranian labor outlets reported.
The demonstration, held near the headquarters of the Pars Gas Complex in Assaluyeh, drew more than 3,000 workers from twelve refinery units and nearby facilities, including the Fajr Jam Gas Refinery, according to ILNA. Protesters called for changes to the job classification system, improved benefits, and the introduction of a rotation plan that would allow administrative and support staff two weeks of work followed by two weeks of rest.
They also urged officials to address the status of hired drivers, reinstate travel and housing allowances that were cut, and move toward direct employment under state companies. Many said the contractor system has left them without security, equal pay, or access to benefits given to permanent staff.
South Pars, the country’s main natural gas hub, has long been a flashpoint for labor unrest, with workers frequently demanding overdue pay and more stable contracts. Tuesday’s gathering adds to a wave of protests in Iran’s energy and industrial sectors over recent months.
Earlier in November, oil contract workers rallied outside the presidential office in Tehran, accusing the government of breaking promises to eliminate middlemen and standardize pay across the industry. Similar demonstrations have been held by petrochemical and steel workers in Ilam and Ahvaz, showing persistent frustration among Iran’s industrial labor force despite repeated pledges of reform.
Speaking during a parliamentary session reviewing his government’s first year under the Seventh Development Plan, Pezeshkian said the country’s strength rests on Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s leadership, which he described as the anchor of national unity.
"The pillar of the country’s tent is the Supreme Leader," he said.
He added the turbulence of the June 12-day war with Israel had never shaken his confidence in Iran’s defense capabilities, but he feared that if anything happened to Khamenei, the country could fall into political infighting – a situation, he cautioned, that would serve Israel’s interests without further action.
"We can disagree with one another, but there is someone who ultimately makes the decisions. During the war I had no fear for myself, but I was worried that, God forbid, if something happened to the leader we would turn on one another – there would be no need for Israel to intervene... We must value him and stand firmly behind him."
Pezeshkian urged rival factions to avoid polarization and to reinforce “discipline, dialogue and cooperation” across institutions. He said the government was focused on economic recovery and stability, calling on lawmakers to help draft a deficit-free budget to curb inflation.
“Inflation rests on our shoulders – the government and parliament,” he said, admitting responsibility for economic hardship and calling for a smaller, more efficient state.
The president acknowledged widespread public frustration with living conditions, citing surveys showing discontent, and urged officials to “serve people without arrogance” rather than seeking political credit.
"It is our duty – we cannot govern while people go hungry. Set the budget so that livelihoods are the priority. I believe that if we do not resolve the public’s livelihood problems, we will go off course."
He also pointed to steps taken to reduce spending, promote renewable energy, and address water and energy shortages through scientific planning and cooperation with universities and regional authorities.
Pezeshkian said coordination among the government, judiciary and parliament had helped resolve several long-standing issues and expressed optimism that sustained cooperation could ease the country’s economic and social strains.
Ali Akbar Velayati, the adviser on international affairs, said Washington’s plan to expand its presence close to Pakistan’s Gwadar port and along Iran’s southern coast is part of a wider effort to counter China’s growing influence and to secure maritime routes linking South Asia to the Middle East. “The US wants new bases near this vital area to maintain its dominance over regional trade and to contain China’s rise,” he told the official news agency IRNA.
Velayati said the US is facing growing resistance to its presence across several regions, including the Middle East and Asia. He added that Iran, as an independent and influential state, will continue to work with Asian and Islamic nations that oppose what he called Western interference and domination.
Tehran steps up backing for allies
Iran’s foreign minister told parliament on Monday that the country has directed much of its diplomatic and political capacity toward supporting what it calls the “axis of resistance,” a network of regional allies opposing US and Israeli influence.
Abbas Araghchi said the ministry had prioritized “security diplomacy” and coordination with allied movements as part of a broader regional strategy. He said recent months have seen intensified confrontation with the United States and Israel, marked by assassinations and airstrikes across the region. “Under these circumstances, a significant portion of the Foreign Ministry’s efforts has been devoted to supporting the axis of resistance, effectively functioning as the foreign ministry of the axis,” he said.
Western governments have urged Iran to limit its backing for armed groups in Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen, saying such support fuels instability. Araghchi said Tehran’s diplomacy also aims to promote a multipolar order and deepen cooperation with blocs such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh told the Abu Dhabi Strategic Debate on Tuesday that Iran was engaged in indirect diplomacy when the attacks took place, calling Washington’s approach a “betrayal of diplomacy.”
He said Tehran still seeks a negotiated resolution to the decades-long nuclear dispute but will not compromise on national security.
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who has final authority on foreign and nuclear policy, has said negotiations with Washington cannot continue under pressure.
Talks between Tehran and Washington, conducted indirectly through intermediaries earlier this year, have stalled since the June conflict, which Iranian officials say shattered trust. Major differences persist over uranium enrichment levels and the lifting of sanctions.
"Tehran is not seeking nuclear bombs and ... is prepared to assure the world about it. We are very proud of our home-grown nuclear program, and is against anyone who tries to sabotage and manipulate it" the diplomat added.
International monitors, including the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have reported no evidence that Iran is building a nuclear weapon, Khatibzadeh pointed out, adding that US intelligence assessments before the June conflict also indicated that Tehran was not actively pursuing bomb development.
Iran maintains that its nuclear program is entirely peaceful and subject to international oversight, arguing that Western claims of weaponization are politically motivated. US officials, however, have continued to call for stricter limits on Iran’s enrichment and missile programs.
Support for regional groups
Khatibzadeh said Iran remained in contact with regional groups it considers part of its security framework, insisting their attacks on Israel were responses to the situation in Gaza and not launched on Iran’s orders.
“I would like to challenge the concept of proxies and militias... reducing them to being Iran’s militias or proxies is oversimplifying the situation,” he said, adding that for example Hezbollah was created after the Israeli attacks to Lebanon in 1980s. “With or without Iran supporting them, the resistance would stay there."
The Iranian deputy foreign minister added, “Has anybody noticed that Hezbollah has fired any bullets on behalf of Iran in the past few months? Everything Hezbollah has done has been for the cause of Palestine.”
On Monday, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told parliament that Tehran had devoted much of its diplomatic capacity to supporting the so-called “axis of resistance,” a term it uses for allied movements in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and among Palestinian factions.
Baha'is are a religious minority in Iran persecuted by the ruling Islamic theocracy.
“My beloved aunt was arrested while pleading for the release of her husband, who himself had been taken from his workplace just weeks earlier. They raided his office, seized files, and vanished him without a word,” said Saghar Shahidi-Birjandian in an interview with Iran International.
“When she tried to find him, they came for her too. Now both are imprisoned without charges, denied lawyers, denied bail, and even denied the right to mourn after a death in the family,” she added.
Shahidi-Birjandian’s uncle, Kourosh Ziari, was arrested on October 4 at his workplace in Gonbad-e Kavus in northeastern Iran after authorities raided his office and seized his documents.
Her aunt, Sholeh Shahidi, was detained two weeks later while advocating for her husband’s release. Both were held at undisclosed locations for weeks before being transferred to the provincial capital of Gorgan, where they remain detained without legal counsel or formal charges.
“Her disabled son, who depends on her for everything, wasn’t even allowed to see her. The cruelty feels endless, and yet all they’ve ever done is live peacefully,” said Shahidi-Birjandian.
She has launched a Change.org petition calling for the couple’s immediate and unconditional release, protection from mistreatment in detention, and the reunion of their disabled son with his parents.
Growing crackdown
Her story is not unique.
Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that brought the clerical establishment to power in Iran, Baha'is have been systemically persecuted simply for their faith because the Islamic Republic does not recognize the Baha'i faith as an official religion and views it as heretical to Islam.
Authorities routinely accuse Baha'is of being spies for Israel since the Baháʼí World Centre is located in Haifa, Israel, though the site predates the creation of Israel.
Baha'is in Iran have faced arbitrary arrests, executions, confiscation of property, denial of higher education, job bans and harassment, a state-sanctioned effort to erase their community from public life despite their peaceful and apolitical beliefs.
Since the 12-day war between Iran and Israel, the situation for Baha'i in Iran has deteriorated sharply, Farhad Sabetan, spokesperson for the Baha’i International Community told Iran International. There has been a coordinated wave of raids across at least six provinces including Sistan and Baluchistan, Semnan, Mazandaran, Fars, Isfahan and Tehran, says Sabetan.
In October alone, security agents raided at least twenty-two homes and businesses, seizing belongings, sealing shops, and detaining Baha'is as part of a growing campaign of intimidation amid Iran’s worsening economic and political crisis.
“Every single instance of what I just described is solely because they’re Baha'is. Authorities often come without a warrant, give no explanation, and later invent charges like acting against national security, without a shred of evidence,” Sabetan said.
“It is pressure upon pressure. They can’t have a job, their stores are sealed, they can’t go to university, and they have no access to basic rights simply because they’re Baháʼís,” he added.
Human rights advocates say the renewed crackdown on Baha'is reflects a broader pattern of repression inside Iran, as the authorities tighten their grip amid economic decline and growing unrest.
For families like Shahidi-Birjandian’s, the cost of practicing their faith remains high.