Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi launches major land reforms aimed at modernising the Iranian economy. The Islamic clergy and landlords build strong opposition to the policies throughout the 1970s, leading to protests, strikes and mass demonstrations. In September 1978, martial law is imposed.

Anti-shah protests attract millions of demonstrators and bring the country to a standstill. The shah and his family flee to Egypt.

The exiled religious leader Ruhollah Khomeini is invited back to Iran. Khomeini becomes the leader of the revolution and its religious and political figurehead.

The Islamic Republic of Iran is proclaimed following a referendum, with Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini as its Supreme Leader.

Tehran University students protest the closure of the reformist paper Salam, sparking six days of riots and clashes with security forces that result in over 1,000 arrests.

Renewed protests marking the anniversary of the 1999 demonstrations lead to a week of clashes with security forces and arrests.

Public anger erupts overnight in Tehran and cities across the country after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad imposes a petroleum rationing scheme to curb imports, leading to long queues at fuel stations.

After Ahmadinejad’s disputed 2009 re-election, opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi’s supporters launch the massive “Green Movement” protests over alleged vote-rigging. The ensuing crackdown results in at least 30 deaths and over 1,000 arrests.

Protesters in several Iranian cities hold demonstrations in support of demonstrators in Egypt, Tunisia and other Arab countries.

Mass protests erupt over economic grievances and quickly spread to more than 100 cities. An unknown number of protesters are killed.

Nationwide protests break out after the government increases petroleum prices up to 200% overnight. Up to 1,500 protests are killed in the state crackdown. Sporadic protests continue through 2020.

Millions across Iran express fury over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody, after she was detained for not wearing a head scarf properly. Protesters rally under the slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom,” with many women removing their headscarves in open defiance of the morality police and strict hijab laws.

“Woman, life, freedom” became a main slogan, and many people took off their headscarves and switched to their attire of choice in the aftermath, openly defying the “morality police” and hardliners calling for punishments and passing a draconian hijab law.

Demonstrations erupt across the country in response to a deepening economic crisis and plunging currency, with protesters calling for the end of the regime. Hundreds have been reportedly killed in the state crackdown so far.