Iranians rally in biggest show of defiance against US since war began

Volunteers rallied through downtown Tehran to take part in a campaign highlighting ‘self-sacrifice’ for Iran.

313,000 volunteers mobilised in Tehran as Iran prepares for possible conflict

Hundreds of thousands of Iranians have marched in a government-organised show of defiance in Tehran, pledging their readiness to take up arms.

The Iranian government showcased a newly formed volunteer force at the rally on Friday. It will receive limited military and emergency response training to serve as an additional layer of security for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Basij militia.

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Volunteers rallied through downtown Tehran in combat uniforms, some carrying flags and weapons, while the government displayed drones, anti-aircraft batteries and other weaponry.

Iranian authorities said 313,000 people joined the event in the capital. Attendance figures could not be independently verified.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attends the military march in Tehran, Iran, September 18, 2026 [Majid Asgaripour/WANA via Reuters]

Tehran’s IRGC chief, Hassan Hassanzadeh, told the state broadcaster IRIB that over 600,000 people had registered to participate in the voluntary Janfada-ye-Iran campaign. That roughly translates to “Those who sacrifice their lives for Iran”, with over one million expected to take part in the training.

Senior Iranian leaders at the rally included President Masoud Pezeshkian and Basij head, Hossein Taeb.

Taeb told participants that the volunteers would be ready for “full-fledged defence” and would be a “nightmare” for Iran’s enemies.

Members of the Basij paramilitary force at the military rally in Tehran on Friday [AFP]

Iranian authorities say mobilising the new volunteer force is part of a broader defence strategy.

“The Islamic Republic has mobilised these people to show that they are united, that they have solidarity and that their people are ready to give anything for the country,” said Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu, reporting from the rally.

Women and teenagers have also registered with the volunteer units, she added.

“I want to show the world that Iran is strong and united. We don’t want war, but we’re ready to defend our country to the very end,” one of the volunteers, Bahera, told our reporter.

Another volunteer, wearing a combat uniform and carrying a rifle, said: “This is our homeland and we won’t let others decide its future”.

President Pezeshkian said in a speech that the rally was a show of solidarity, Koseoglu noted.

“This is not only a message to countries like the US and Israel, which are attacking Iran, but also to the Islamic Republic that we are ready for any crisis.”

Members of Iran’s Basij paramilitary force at the rally [AFP]

Economy and mobilisation

Friday’s rally happened as the Iranian economy struggles under the US naval blockade of Iranian ports and new US sanctions.

Esmaeil Baghaei, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, condemned the “brutal economic war, deliberately designed to inflict maximum pain and suffering on every Iranian citizen”.

As the latest addition to its economic pressure campaign, the US administration on Thursday went after digital currency networks that it says are illegally providing sanctioned Iranian entities with access to the international financial system.

The struggling economy was a key driver for protests last December that quickly turned into a challenge to the political system in place since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Iran said about 3,000 people were killed in the protests, but activists say the state crackdown killed over 7,000.

However, the war launched in late February by US-Israeli strikes has since allowed the authorities to regain the initiative by presenting themselves as a bulwark against the country’s enemies.

The volunteer mobilisation campaign started in early April, at the height of US-Israeli attacks.

According to the authorities, more than 30 million people registered for a potential call-up, about a third of the population of 86 million.

志愿者们聚集在德黑兰市中心，参​​加一项旨在强调为伊朗“自我牺牲”的活动。

伊朗为应对可能发生的冲突，德黑兰动员了31.3万名志愿者。

数十万伊朗民众在德黑兰参加了由政府组织的抗议游行，并表示随时准备拿起武器。

伊朗政府周五在集会上展示了一支新组建的志愿部队。这支部队将接受有限的军事和应急响应训练，为伊朗伊斯兰革命卫队（IRGC）和巴斯基民兵组织提供额外的安全保障。

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志愿者们身着作战服，在德黑兰市中心集结，一些人手持旗帜和武器，而政府则展示了无人机、防空炮和其他武器。

伊朗当局称，首都共有31.3万人参加了此次活动。但实际出席人数无法得到独立核实。

2026年9月18日，伊朗总统马苏德·佩泽什基安在伊朗德黑兰出席阅兵式。[Majid Asgaripour/WANA via Reuters]

伊朗伊斯兰革命卫队总司令哈桑·哈桑扎德告诉伊朗国家广播电视台（IRIB），已有超过60万人报名参加“为伊朗献身”志愿训练营，预计将有超过100万人参加相关培训。

出席集会的伊朗高级领导人包括总统马苏德·佩泽什基安和巴斯基民兵组织领导人侯赛因·塔伊布。

塔伊布告诉参与者，志愿者们将做好“全面防御”的准备，并将成为伊朗敌人的“噩梦”。

周五，巴斯基民兵组织成员在德黑兰参加军事集会 [法新社]

伊朗当局表示，动员这支新的志愿部队是更广泛的国防战略的一部分。

半岛电视台记者西内姆·科塞奥卢在集会现场报道说：“伊斯兰共和国动员这些人，是为了表明他们团结一致，他们的人民愿意为国家付出一切。”

她还补充说，妇女和青少年也已在志愿者队伍中登记注册。

“我想向世界展示伊朗的强大和团结。我们不希望发生战争，但我们准备捍卫我们的国家直到最后一刻，”一名志愿者巴赫拉告诉我们的记者。

另一名身穿作战服、肩扛步枪的志愿者说：“这是我们的家园，我们不会让他人决定它的未来。”

科塞奥卢指出，佩泽什基扬总统在讲话中表示，这次集会是一次团结的展示。

“这不仅是对美国和以色列等攻击伊朗的国家发出的信息，也是对伊朗伊斯兰共和国发出的信息，表明我们已经做好应对任何危机的准备。”

伊朗巴斯基民兵组织成员参加集会 [法新社]

经济与动员

周五的股市上涨正值伊朗经济因美国海军封锁伊朗港口和新的美国制裁而举步维艰之际。

伊朗外交部发言人伊斯梅尔·巴盖伊谴责了这场“残酷的经济战，这场战争蓄意给每一位伊朗公民带来最大的痛苦和折磨”。

作为其经济施压行动的最新举措，美国政府周四对数字货币网络展开打击，称这些网络非法向受制裁的伊朗实体提供进入国际金融体系的渠道。

去年12月，经济困境是引发抗议活动的关键因素，这些抗议活动迅速演变成对1979年伊斯兰革命以来一直沿用的政治体制的挑战。伊朗方面称，抗议活动中约有3000人丧生，但活动人士表示，政府的镇压导致超过7000人死亡。

然而，自2月下旬美国和以色列发动空袭以来，这场战争使当局得以重新掌握主动权，把自己塑造成抵御国家敌人的堡垒。

志愿者动员活动始于四月初，当时正值美以冲突的高峰期。

据官方统计，超过3000万人登记等待可能的征召，约占8600万人口的三分之一。