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Anti-government protests continue across Iran, with videos showing students chanting anti-government slogans as nuclear talks with the United States are set to resume on Thursday.
A video translated by Reuters showed protesters chanting “We will fight, we will die, we will take Iran back,” indicating growing anger at the country’s leadership.
The renewed unrest follows months of frustration over economic hardship, repression and previous recessions, putting more domestic pressure on the government as talks continue. Analysts say the combination of domestic protests, military pressure abroad and a stagnant social media presence has hardened rather than compromised the rhetoric on both sides.
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Military members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) west of Tehran, Iran (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The Iranian regime, on the other hand, strikes a defiant tone. President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran “will not bow” to pressure tied to the nuclear talks, warning that external pressure will not change Iran’s position, according to Al Jazeera.
His comments come ahead of a new round of US-Iran talks scheduled for Thursday in Geneva, confirmed by Oman, which is mediating the talks. The talks aim to address Tehran’s nuclear program amid growing regional tensions, although major disagreements remain over enrichment limits, sanctions relief and the extent of any deal.
In a February speech analyzed by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered a halt to uranium enrichment and rejected US demands to include Iran’s ballistic missile program and the role of a regional representative in the talks.
This analysis, approved by the FDD research analyst, Janatan Sayeh and the executive director of the Iran Program, Behnam Ben Taleblu, noted that Khamenei has intensified the attacks on the leadership of Washington, calling President Donald Trump a “criminal” for supporting the protests in Iran and broadcasting speeches that compare him to a dictator.
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An exercise aimed at assessing preparedness and practicing responses to security threats comes as a second round of talks. (Press Office of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Meanwhile, the United States has increased its military presence in the Middle East while signing power remains an option. The deployment has shaped both the tone and the urgency of the talks, reinforcing that diplomacy is unfolding under the shadow of possible escalation.
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff warned on Saturday that Iran could be “a week away” from having “the material to make industrial bombs,” citing enrichment levels that he said were close to weapons capability.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei addresses the public during the 47th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution, according to Iranian state television, in Tehran, Iran on February 9, 2026. (Iranian Leader Press Office/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“It’s up to 60%,” Witkoff said. “It’s about a week away from getting industrial-grade bomb-making materials.” He spoke on “My View with Lara Trump,” describing the situation as dangerous and accusing Iran of breaking the red line of “enriching” President Trump.
US officials have warned that failure to reach an agreement could have serious consequences, while Tehran has shown it is ready to retaliate if attacked, reinforcing the idea that the talks are taking place under great pressure.
Reuters contributed to this report.
