07.02.2026 20:40
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent admitted to a 'financial siege' against the Iranian economy. The Secretary stated that they created a deliberate dollar shortage in Iran, and as a result of this move, protests began on December 28, 2025, starting at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran and spreading throughout the country. Bessent's strategy was to drive inflation to an uncontrollable pace and to pressure the government by bringing the people to the streets. As a result of these events in Iran, thousands of people lost their lives.
The confession of U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent regarding the Iranian economy has made headlines in the Middle East. While Secretary Bessent stated that they created a deliberate "dollar shortage" in Iran, the reflection of this move was mass protests that began on December 28, 2025, at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran and spread throughout the country.
BESSENT: WE ENDED THE DOLLAR, TRIGGERED INFLATION Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent openly shared Washington's new era Iran strategy during a panel. Bessent stated, "We created an artificial dollar shortage by drying up foreign currency liquidity in Iran. With this strategy, we brought inflation to an uncontrollable pace." Implying that the ultimate goal of this economic pressure was to push the people into the streets to exert pressure on the government, Bessent said, "We created a dollar shortage in Iran. Inflation skyrocketed, and as a result, the Iranian people took to the streets."
Donald Trump-Scott Bessent DECEMBER 28 SPARK: TEHRAN TRADERS CLOSED THEIR SHOPS The first concrete results of the financial operation mentioned by Bessent were seen on December 28, 2025. The traders at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran, the lifeblood of the Iranian economy, lowered their shutters as the local currency lost value against foreign currencies within minutes. Thousands of people, crushed under the burden of rising living costs, joined the traders who took to the streets, saying, "We cannot trade."
With the complete blockage of banking channels, the dollar turned into a "black market" commodity in the Iranian market. Basic food and medicine prices tripled in a month, erasing the purchasing power of the people. The protests that began in Tehran quickly spread to major cities like Mashhad, Tabriz, and Isfahan.
PROTESTS IN IRAN On December 28, 2025, due to the rapid devaluation of the local currency against foreign currencies and the deepening economic troubles, protests led by traders began at the Grand Bazaar in Tehran and spread across the country.
During the protests that escalated in the capital Tehran on January 8, the government blocked internet access due to the incidents that occurred.
The Iranian Foundation for Martyrs and Veterans announced in a statement on January 21, based on the Forensic Medicine Institution, that 3,117 people, including security forces and civilians, had lost their lives in the protests.
It was stated that 2,427 of these individuals were security forces and civilian citizens killed by "armed terrorist groups," while no information was provided about 690 people.
Although the protests in Iran have come to an end, HRANA, based in Virginia, USA, continues to update the death and detention counts, claiming to have verified more cases.