Incendiary Attack on District Governor’s Office in Khoy and Assault on Police Station in Eslamshahr
On the twenty-third day of the nationwide uprising of the Iranian people, on Monday, January 19, various cities across the country witnessed the continuation of protests and street clashes between the public and the regime’s repressive forces.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) announced in its statement number 52 the expansion of clashes and hit-and-run confrontations between protesting youth and repressive forces in several cities across the country. This statement focuses on events on Saturday and Sunday, January 17 and 18, and explains the field and political dimensions of these developments.
L’Argentine désigne officiellement le Corps des gardiens de la révolution islamique comme organisation terroriste #IranProtests #FreeIran2026 #IranRevolutionhttps://t.co/eLQdDUzJcS
— Iran Focus (@Iran_Focus) January 18, 2026
According to this report, over these two days Tehran and several other cities, including Khoy, Eslamshahr, Kermanshah, and Sarpol-e Zahab, became scenes of widespread clashes between rebellious youth and regime repressive forces. In Tehran, various areas such as Valiasr Street, Saadat Abad, Salehiyeh, Tehranpars, and Ekbatan Township witnessed street battles. During these clashes, protesters voiced their opposition to the ruling establishment by chanting slogans such as “Death to the dictator” and “Death to Khamenei.”
In the city of Khoy, intense street battles were reported on Saturday night. In response to indiscriminate gunfire by repressive forces, rebellious youth set fire to the district governor’s office and a Basij center. The Basij is a paramilitary force affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. During these clashes, slogans such as “I will kill, I will kill the one who killed my brother; I will kill, I will kill whoever killed my sister” and “Until a cleric is shrouded, this homeland will not be a homeland” were chanted. The previous night, two other Basij centers in Khoy had also been set ablaze during confrontations with the city’s youth.
Attack on a Police Station in Eslamshahr
In Eslamshahr as well, protesting youth clashed with special riot units and stormed the police station known as Qaemieh, disarming agents who were firing at the people. These events indicate an escalation in direct confrontation between protesters and law enforcement and security forces.
In Kermanshah province, reports indicate widespread clashes in several locations. In the village of “Aineh Vand,” near Sarpol-e Zahab, local residents and courageous youth from the Qalkhani tribe managed to break the encirclement imposed by regime forces. In an armed confrontation, while repelling agents who had entered the area to arrest wounded protesters, part of the regime’s forces were disarmed. Clashes also occurred in Taq-e Bostan between youth and repressive forces, and in the city of Kermanshah, a Basij member named Morteza Hashmati was killed during confrontations with the public.
On Monday, January 19, the popular uprising and protests entered their twenty-third day. This comes as the Iranian regime and its repressive apparatus, by imposing an undeclared form of martial law and a complete internet shutdown, are attempting to conceal the popular uprising and the dimensions of the regime’s horrific crimes.
Heavy Losses Inflicted by the People’s Uprising on the Repressive Apparatus
Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Security Commission of the Iranian regime’s Majlis (parliament), admitted to part of the extensive damage inflicted on the regime during the January uprising and reported serious blows.
Le régime iranien fait pression sur les familles des manifestants tués #IranProtests #FreeIran2026 #IranRevolutionhttps://t.co/yXh4sAU2E8
— Iran Focus (@Iran_Focus) January 18, 2026
According to him, during this uprising more than 2,200 motorcycles and vehicles belonging to the regime’s law enforcement forces were set on fire.
Azizi also stated that 250 Basij bases in schools and 90 regime seminaries were targeted and destroyed. The Basij is a paramilitary force subordinate to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The head of the Majlis Security Commission added that in these events, 3,709 members of the law enforcement forces, the Basij, and the IRGC were seriously injured figures that demonstrate the depth of the blow dealt by the uprising to the regime’s repressive structures.
LCI France Exposes the “Commercialization of the Bodies of the Killed” in Iran
The French news network LCI, in a report broadcast on Friday, January 16, quoted Iranian witnesses as saying that in Iran “an organized system for the commercialization of the bodies of those killed” has taken shape.
According to this report, families are forced to pay sums to retrieve the bodies of those killed, calculated based on the number of bullets that struck the body. Witnesses said that up to 4 billion rials were demanded for each bullet (approximately 2,858 dollars).
LCI, referring to joint investigations by Iranian media with the participation of TF1 and France 24, reported the existence of a profiteering structure that exploits the suffering of families.
In one account, a father in Tehran found his daughter’s body in a morgue after two days of searching and was confronted with a financial demand based on the number of bullets to retrieve it. LCI described this process as “extremely ruthless.”
Mike Pence: Change in Iran Will Transform the Middle East and the World
Mike Pence, the former vice president of the United States, said in an interview with CNN that the Iranian regime is the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism.
He said that in addition to brutally suppressing the people of Iran, the regime exports terrorism across the region and endangers the lives of American citizens and those of other countries in the Middle East and around the world.
Pence emphasized that change in Iran would benefit the United States and its allies, adding that if Tehran’s rulers continue their reign of terror against the Iranian people, all options are on the table.
He stressed that change in Iran would not be limited to the country itself, but could transform the Middle East and even global security and political dynamics.
