Ceremonies were held across Iran on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, to mourn those who died in the protests of January 8 and 9, the apex of demonstrations that began in December.

While the protests in Iran, which by all accounts resulted in the deaths of thousands of people, were widely reported, there has been little attention paid to what triggered the protests.

It is known that since President Trump broke away from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, brokered by the Obama administration, sanctions have been restored and significantly expanded.

What is generally not known, is that a little under a fortnight ago, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent acknowledged the part the Trump administration played in the eruption of the protests. According to Bessent, in testimony given on 6 February 2026 before a Senate Banking Committee hearing on the Financial Stability Oversight Council's (FSOC) annual report to Congress, Treasury created a shortage of U.S. dollars which culminated in December in a freefall of the Iranian currency, a run on the banks, and the collapse of one of the largest banks in Iran. Bessent told the Senate hearing that inflation exploded, and people took to the streets. He described the protests as a "swift," and "grand culmination," of a strategy he outlined during a speech at the Economic Club in New York in March. 

In response to a question by Republican Senator for Alabama, Katie Britt, Bessent said: "What we can and have done is created a dollar shortage in the country."

"I outlined a strategy in a speech at the Economic Club in New York in March," the treasury secretary told senators. "It came to a swift and, I would say, grand culmination in December when one of the largest banks in Iran went under."

"There was a run on the banks. The central bank had to print money, the Iranian currency went into free fall, inflation exploded, and hence we have seen the Iranian people out on the street," Bessent said.

"We will continue monitoring … all the Iranian partners … We have seen the Iranian leadership wiring money out of the country like crazy. So the rats are leaving the ship, and that is a good sign that they know the end may be near," the treasury secretary added.

According to Wikipedia: On 28 December 2025, a widespread wave of protests and strikes began in Iran. These protests were sparked by the severe deterioration of the economic conditions, rising inflation, increasing exchange rate, market instability, and the collapse of the rial's value. The protests started in the Tehran Grand Bazaar and the surrounding commercial centers, leading to the closure of shops and the formation of labor protests. They quickly spread to other cities in Iran.

Iran's currency in December hit an all-time low of 1.4 million rials to one U.S. dollar.

The official death toll recognized by the Iranian government is 3,117. Iran says 'terrorists' and 'rioters' infiltrated the protests, saying they were armed by the United States and Israel, who the Iranian government accused of attempting a 'coup.'

Human Rights Activists News Agency says it has verified 7,015 deaths, but are still investigating another 11,700. Mai Sato, the UN special rapporteur on Iran, told El Pais on Tuesday of this week, "The Iranian National Security Council published a figure of 3,117 deaths at the end of January. Of these, they said that 2,427 were 'innocent people and protectors of order and security.' The Minister of Foreign Affairs then claimed that the remaining 690 were terrorists. Some of the numbers from civil society organizations reach 20,000, but even the death of a single protester was serious enough, as these were people who took to the streets exercising their freedom of expression and assembly. I believe that the death toll is much higher than the official figure of 3,000," the Tokyo-born UN special rapporteur said.