Dissent In Flames: Why Iranian Women Are Lighting Cigarettes With Khamenei’s Photos

TEHRAN/DUBAI – As the death toll from Iran’s nationwide uprising climbs—with some reports from Tehran hospitals suggesting over 200 fatalities—a powerful new symbol of resistance has emerged. Viral visuals show Iranian women lighting cigarettes using the smoldering remains of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s official portraits.

These acts are not merely random; they represent a calculated strike against the two pillars of the Islamic Republic’s control: religious sanctity and social morality.

1. Breaking the Ultimate Taboo

Under Iranian law, insulting the Supreme Leader or burning his image is a “grave crime” that carries the risk of long-term imprisonment or worse.

• The Symbolism: By using the burning face of the 86-year-old leader to light a cigarette, women are signaling that they no longer fear the regime’s most sacred and feared authority.
• A Growing Trend: Reports indicate this trend has spread from Tehran to Isfahan and Mashhad, with women recording these acts as “selfies” for platforms like TikTok and X, despite the rolling internet blackouts.

2. Smoking as an Act of Defiance

While smoking is not technically illegal for women in Iran, it has long been socially stigmatized and discouraged by morality police as “un-Islamic” or immodest behavior.

• The Message: Lighting a cigarette in public, combined with the burning of the hijab, serves as a rejection of the state’s “morality” codes that led to the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022.
• Reclaiming Agency: Protesters are conveying that the regime no longer has the right to dictate personal choices—whether it’s what a woman wears or what she does with her own body.

3. Violence Behind the Blackout

While the world watches these symbolic acts, a much grimmer reality is unfolding on the ground.

• Casualty Reports: A doctor in Tehran informed TIME Magazine that just six hospitals have already recorded 217 deaths, primarily from live ammunition used by security forces.
• Information Fog: The NetBlocks watchdog has confirmed a “nationwide internet shutdown,” which Amnesty International warns is being used to “mask regime violence” and hinder the documentation of human rights abuses.
• Civil Disobedience: In areas like northern Tehran’s Sa’adat Abad, residents have taken to banging pots and pans (cacerolazo) and shouting slogans from rooftops to maintain momentum during the digital blackout.

4. Geopolitical Tension: Trump vs. Khamenei