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Widespread power outage in Tehran, Iran’s capital, amid the country’s ongoing energy crisis

As freezing temperatures and heavy snowfall grip Iran, the regime has resorted to its usual tactics—shutting down government offices, schools, and financial markets in 28 provinces rather than addressing its decades-long failure in energy management. This latest shutdown, announced following a so-called “crisis management” meeting, once again exposes how the regime’s corruption and incompetence have left the country incapable of handling even predictable seasonal changes.

The regime claims the closures, set for Saturday, February 8, 2025, are due to “preserving energy stability” amid plummeting temperatures. However, this is nothing but an attempt to shift the blame for its crumbling infrastructure, failing power grid, and chronic mismanagement. The provinces affected include Tehran, Alborz, Kerman, Semnan, Hamadan, Zanjan, North Khorasan, South Khorasan, Razavi Khorasan, Markazi, Qom, Bushehr, East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, Lorestan, Isfahan, Mazandaran, Gilan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Kurdistan, Ilam, Kermanshah, Fars, Qazvin, Golestan, Ardabil, and Khuzestan—virtually the entire country.

The closure extends beyond government offices and schools. In a rare move that further exposes the depth of the crisis, even the Tehran Stock Exchange and all financial markets—including the Energy Exchange, Commodity Exchange, and Over-the-Counter Market—will be shut down. This decision, made under the pretense of maintaining stability, is a desperate effort to contain public frustration and avoid further exposure to the regime’s financial failures.

Iran: Reasons for Power Outages and Air Pollution #Iran #pollution #environnementhttps://t.co/FGZCY51MW5

— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) February 23, 2021

State-run IRNA quoted officials attempting to frame the shutdown as a necessary precaution. One of them, Mansour Shisheh-Foroush, head of the Crisis Management Headquarters in Isfahan Province, stated that “all public institutions must turn off their heating systems and boilers over the weekend” in an effort to save energy. Farajollah Elyat, Acting Deputy for Coordination of Civil Affairs in Semnan Province, stated that closures aim to ‘stabilize energy transmission lines and manage travel,’ a thinly veiled admission of the regime’s failure to ensure basic energy security.

But the crisis extends beyond just cold weather. In Gilan Province, torrential rains have caused severe flooding, with local officials urging residents near Pirazar to evacuate their homes. Rainfall has reached 120 mm in just 24 hours, the highest in the country. Social media videos show entire neighborhoods in Rasht submerged, exposing the regime’s complete neglect of infrastructure maintenance and flood control measures. Yet again, instead of accountability, the regime’s response is simply to shut everything down and pretend this is a temporary issue.

#Iran News: Widespread Power Outages and #Fuel Crisis Amplify Winter Woeshttps://t.co/Gwdx6T9Utn

— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) December 14, 2024

For years, the regime has dodged responsibility for its catastrophic failures in energy planning. With rolling blackouts, fuel rationing, and gas shortages now a seasonal norm, the clerical establishment has no solutions—only excuses. Instead of investing in infrastructure, Tehran has funneled billions into funding its terrorist proxies in the region while leaving the Iranian people in the dark, both literally and figuratively.

The situation has reached a point where regime officials can no longer deny reality. The entire country is witnessing the consequences of decades of corruption, mismanagement, and misplaced priorities. No amount of rhetoric or orchestrated shutdowns can conceal the truth—the regime’s economic and energy policies have completely collapsed, and the Iranian people are once again paying the price.