The severe explosion that occurred in the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on 27 April 2025 – which left at least forty people dead and around a thousand injured – has had a lasting side effect: a nationwide strike by lorry drivers, which started on 19 May. The blast – likely caused by the illegal storage of solid missile propellants belonging to the Revolutionary Guards among civilian goods – killed numerous drivers and destroyed dozens of industrial vehicles. But this was merely the spark for a protest that had long been simmering.
The lorry drivers' grievances stem from rising costs, low tariffs and poor safety conditions. Insurance premiums, spare parts and even fuel prices have increased – in a country that exports oil – while the amount of subsidised diesel available to the haulage sector has been drastically cut. Additionally, logistical problems are causing delays in fuel distribution. Drivers also complain of inadequate road safety, a rise in thefts, and are demanding official recognition of their work as physically exhausting.
The strike, which began in Bandar Abbas itself, quickly spread across the whole of Iran. Sources among Iranians in exile claim that around 900,000 drivers are taking part, halting up to ninety percent of the country’s road freight operations. Between 125 and 163 cities are reportedly affected, with severe consequences for supply chains, fuel distribution, and industrial and agricultural activities.
According to the same sources, the strike has gained support from other sectors hit by the economic crisis, including bakers, farmers, teachers, pensioners and healthcare workers. Public figures and dissidents have also expressed solidarity, among them filmmaker Jafar Panahi (Palme d’Or winner at Cannes), Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi and singer Mehdi Yarrahi.
The government has responded to the strike with a mixture of repression – including arrests, threats to revoke licences, vehicle seizures and use of force – and promises, such as temporary increases in fuel quotas and 500 litres of free diesel for non-strikers. It has also accused “hostile foreign media” of fuelling the movement, while state media have downplayed the scale of the strike. However, the government’s reaction has not succeeded in quashing the protest, which remains ongoing after eleven days and now stands as one of the most significant forms of organised dissent against the regime.
