In a dramatic expansion of its crackdown following deadly January protests, Iran has arrested at least seven prominent reformist politicians and summoned seven others to court, marking a significant escalation that targets figures who have operated within the Islamic Republic's legal framework for decades while seeking gradual reform.
The arrests of leaders from the Reformists Front—a coalition that has sought to change but not overthrow Iran's clerical system—signal that the regime is now eliminating even moderate opposition voices after violently suppressing street protests that killed thousands. The move has shocked observers who viewed reformists as loyal to the Islamic Republic despite their criticism of specific policies.
"Having bludgeoned the streets into silence with exemplary cruelty, the regime has shifted its attention inward, fixing its stare on its loyal opposition," wrote Ali Vaez, senior Iran analyst at the International Crisis Group. "The reformists, sensing the ground move beneath them, had begun to drift—and power, ever paranoid, is now determined to cauterize dissent before it learns to walk."
The Arrested Leaders
Among those detained are some of Iran's most prominent reformist figures, including:
Azar Mansouri, head of the Reformists Front and secretary-general of the coalition representing multiple reform-oriented political groups. Security forces from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' intelligence unit arrested her "from the door of her home under a judicial order," according to the Reformists Front.
Mohsen Aminzadeh, a former deputy foreign minister who served under reformist President Mohammad Khatami from 1997 to 2005. As a diplomat, Aminzadeh was part of the reformist administration that attempted to improve Iran's relations with the West.
Ebrahim Asgharzadeh, a former member of parliament who, ironically, led the 1979 student occupation of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran that resulted in the 444-day hostage crisis. His participation in that defining moment of the Islamic Revolution makes his arrest particularly symbolic of how far the crackdown has extended.
Javad Emam, spokesman for the Reformists Front, was taken from his home by security forces on February 9, one day after the initial wave of arrests.
Additionally, authorities detained Hossein Karroubi, son of reformist leader and former prime minister Mehdi Karroubi, who has been under house arrest for 14 years. The younger Karroubi was accused of being the "instigator, drafter and publisher" of his father's recent statement calling for an independent inquiry into the protest crackdown and a public referendum on Iran's governance.
The Charges: Accused of Supporting U.S. and Israel
Iran's judiciary accused the detained reformists of "organizing and leading extensive activities aimed at disrupting the political and social situation" at a time when the country faced "military threats" from Israel and the United States. According to the official Mizan news agency, authorities claimed the individuals had done their utmost "to justify the actions of the terrorist foot soldiers on the streets."
Iran's head of the judiciary, Gholam Hossein Ejei, said Monday he had instructed prosecutors to "pre-emptively" deal with individuals deemed a threat to national security. While he did not name the reformist politicians directly, he appeared to allude to them by saying some arrested individuals "are saying exactly what the United States and the Israeli regime are saying."
The judiciary's media outlet described the detainees as "four important political elements supporting the Zionist regime and the United States," though it provided no evidence for these allegations.
These charges represent a familiar pattern in Iranian politics: labeling domestic critics as foreign agents to delegitimize their concerns and justify repression. The accusations are particularly ironic given that many of these reformists have spent decades working within the Islamic Republic's system and have repeatedly affirmed their loyalty to it, even while calling for modifications to its policies.
What the Reformists Actually Said
The arrests followed public statements by the Reformist Front and individual members sharply condemning the government's deadly violence toward protesters during the nationwide uprising in January. The coalition had become increasingly vocal in criticizing the massive death toll and demanding accountability.
On January 26, Mansouri released a statement addressing protesters and their families: "We will not allow the blood of these loved ones to be forgotten or the truth to be lost in obscurity. No power, no justification, and no passage of time can cleanse this great tragedy."
During the state crackdown on mass protests, the Reformists Front issued a statement saying that "a large segment of Iranian citizens have lost their trust in all the institutions and capacities that were supposed to protect, represent, and pursue their demands."
After the 12-day war with Israel in June 2025, the coalition warned that "incremental collapse" awaited Iran if the country did not adopt fundamental reforms—a prescient prediction given the massive protests that erupted six months later.
Perhaps most significantly, the group was reportedly drawing up a statement calling for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to step down and relinquish power to President Masoud Pezeshkian, preparing Iran for a transition period, according to three party members and leaked audio from a meeting of senior figures circulating on social media. This represented a dramatic escalation in reformist criticism, crossing a red line by directly challenging Khamenei's authority.
The Historical Context of Iranian Reformism
Iran's reformist political faction is a legal and organized movement that has been a force in Iranian politics for three decades. President Mohammad Khatami, considered the father and founder of the party, served two consecutive four-year terms from 1997 to 2005. Other prominent reformists have served as parliament members, ministers, and political advisers.
The current first vice president of Iran, Mohammad Reza Aref, hails from the reformist camp, and the coalition played an instrumental role in helping current President Pezeshkian win election in 2024. The party's endorsement convinced many Iranians to vote for Pezeshkian despite widespread disillusionment with the political system.
However, reformists have also been repeatedly targeted by hardline rivals seeking to sideline them and consolidate power. The most notable previous crackdown came in 2009, when a contested presidential election sparked the Green Movement protests. Authorities arrested numerous reformist politicians, and two reformist leaders—Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hossein Mousavi—were placed under house arrest, where they remain today, 17 years later.
The 2009 repression significantly weakened the reformist movement, but it survived and gradually rebuilt influence. The current crackdown appears aimed at more comprehensively eliminating reformism as a viable political force within Iran.
The Death Toll Dispute
The arrests occurred against the backdrop of ongoing disputes about how many people died during the January protests. The Iranian government acknowledged on February 8 that 3,117 people were killed, publishing a list of 2,986 names—most of whom authorities claim were security forces members and "innocent bystanders."
However, human rights organizations dispute this characterization dramatically. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said it has verified 6,961 deaths and is investigating 11,730 additional cases. This would put the actual death toll potentially above 18,000—making it by far the deadliest period of civil unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The discrepancy in numbers reflects fundamentally different narratives about what happened. The government portrays the protests as violent riots instigated by foreign powers, with security forces defending themselves and innocent bystanders caught in crossfire. Human rights groups describe a massacre in which security forces deliberately fired on largely peaceful protesters with live ammunition.
Most deaths occurred during the nights of January 8-9, when authorities launched a coordinated nationwide crackdown that appears to have involved shoot-to-kill orders. The government's subsequent internet blackout made documenting casualties extremely difficult and continues to hamper verification efforts.
International Context: Simultaneous Nuclear Talks
The timing of the arrests is particularly notable as they occurred just days after Iranian and U.S. officials held talks in Oman that both sides described as positive. President Donald Trump had threatened military action against Iran during the peak of the protests but later said he believed Tehran would be open to a deal.
The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier and accompanying naval and air forces remain positioned in the Middle East, maintaining both pressure on Tehran and strike capability should Trump order military action. Trump has repeatedly declared Iran must not obtain nuclear weapons and has demanded a comprehensive deal addressing not only the nuclear program but also Iran's ballistic missiles and support for regional militant groups.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was scheduled to visit Washington for discussions expected to focus heavily on Iran, with military options reportedly on the table if negotiations fail.
Analysts interpret the arrests as a message not just to Iranians but to the outside world as these negotiations proceed. "This is clearly a regime that has now demonstrated that it is willing to fight for its survival at any cost," Vaez said, suggesting the crackdown shows Iran will not liberalize under external pressure.
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said Sunday that Iran could envision "a series of confidence-building measures concerning the nuclear program" in exchange for the United States lifting sanctions. However, he insisted on Iran's right to continue enriching uranium—a position unlikely to satisfy U.S. and Israeli demands.
Challenge for President Pezeshkian
The arrests present a significant challenge for President Pezeshkian, who campaigned as a candidate closely affiliated with the Reformist Front. The party's endorsement played an instrumental role in convincing many Iranians to vote for him despite widespread political apathy and distrust of the system.
Pezeshkian has not publicly commented on the arrests, placing him in an impossible position. Defending the arrested reformists would put him at odds with Khamenei and hardline elements that control the security apparatus. Remaining silent makes him appear either powerless or complicit in the repression of his own political allies.
The situation illustrates the fundamental limitation of reform within Iran's political system: elected officials like the president serve at the pleasure of the unelected supreme leader, who controls the military, security services, and judiciary. When Khamenei and the IRGC decide to eliminate reformists, the reformist president has no mechanism to stop them.
Additional Repressions: Narges Mohammadi and Filmmakers
The crackdown extends beyond politicians. Narges Mohammadi, the imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate, received an additional prison sentence exceeding seven years, demonstrating authorities' determination to silence even internationally recognized critics of the protest response.
Filmmaker Mehdi Mahmoudian, co-screenwriter of "It Was Just an Accident," which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2025, was also arrested for contributing to statements critical of authorities written after the January crackdown. The detention of cultural figures signals that no category of public intellectual or artist is safe from repression.
These arrests follow a pattern of targeting anyone with public influence who expressed sympathy for protesters or criticized the government's violent response, regardless of their field or international standing.
The Reformists' Dilemma and Public Support
Whether reformists retain significant public support remains uncertain and was a subject of debate even before the arrests. During the January protests, many demonstrators chanted "Death to Khamenei" and expressed support for Iran's exiled crown prince, appearing to reject all politicians working within the Islamic Republic's framework—including reformists.
Political activist and former political prisoner Hossein Razzaq told Radio Farda that authorities are cracking down on any form of dissent, including reformists who "see themselves as loyal to the Islamic republic." This characterization captures the tragic irony: reformists spent decades affirming their loyalty to the system while advocating for changes within it, but the system has now decided even that qualified loyalty represents an unacceptable threat.
The large death toll from the protests deepened longstanding tensions between reformist leaders and their base, which has grown increasingly disillusioned with the Islamic Republic and sought a tougher stance toward the country's rulers. Many younger Iranians, in particular, view reformism as a failed project that legitimized an unreformable system.
Long-Term Risks for the Regime
By pursuing such a forceful crackdown against reformists, Iranian authorities face a significant long-term risk: they may push these figures to eventually take a stronger oppositional stance, according to Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House.
"This is a signal things are going to get worse before they get better," Vakil said. "This is not going to be a snap back to life as normal."
Sina Azodi, director of the Middle East Studies programme at George Washington University, characterized the arrests as indicating the Islamic Republic "has decided to close any avenues for political dissent and, rather, to rule with an iron fist, through crackdowns and more fear-mongering among any political dissidents."
Historically, authoritarian regimes that eliminate all channels for peaceful political opposition and reform risk pushing dissidents toward more radical positions and tactics. If reformists conclude that working within the system is impossible because the system will imprison them anyway, they may eventually embrace more fundamental opposition to the regime itself.
Looking Forward
As the arrested reformists face prosecution on charges of supporting Israel and the United States—allegations that may carry severe penalties including potential death sentences—the future of political reform in Iran appears bleaker than at any point since the 1979 revolution.
The arrests eliminate a safety valve that previously allowed some expression of dissent within controlled channels. Whether this makes the system more stable by eliminating potential internal subversion, or less stable by foreclosing all peaceful paths for change, remains to be seen.
What is clear is that Iran's political landscape has fundamentally shifted. The space for legal opposition has collapsed. The question now is whether Iranians will accept living under increasingly authoritarian rule, or whether eliminating all peaceful alternatives for change will ultimately produce more radical forms of resistance.
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