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Canadian MP joins viral Iran protest trend, lights cigar with Khamenei's burning photo | Watch
Videos that went viral on social media appeared to show Iranian women lighting cigarettes using burning photographs of the supreme leader.
Canadian MP Roman Baber on Monday joined a viral social media trend taking over the streets of Iran amid deadly protests, as he lit a cigar from a burning photo of the unrest-hit country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Notably, images of Iranian women lighting cigarettes using burnt photographs of Khamenei have gone viral on social media amid the regime’s crackdown on anti-government protests that have led to the deaths of 646 people, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. Follow live updates of Iran protests here.
Canadian MP joins viral Iran protest trend
Baber, a member of the House of Commons of Canada, posted a video on X showing him standing outside his office and burning a photo of Khamenei.
He then proceeded to light a cigar from the photo, following a trend that has drawn attention for Iranian women’s courage and pushback against rigid social restrictions.
Watch the video here:
He captioned the post, “F Khamenei!” and used “#FreeIran2026” as the hashtag.
Meaning behind Iranian women’s viral trend during protests
Videos that went viral on social media, which HT.com could not independently verify, appeared to show Iranian women lighting cigarettes using burning photographs of the supreme leader.
Other unverified footage from Tehran also showed women setting their headscarves on fire in large bonfires.
HT had earlier reported that two separate rules help explain the meaning behind these actions. First, burning images of the supreme leader is considered a serious offence under Iranian law.
Second, women smoking has for many years been restricted or discouraged in several parts of the country.
By combining these two acts and openly challenging compulsory hijab rules, protesters are seen as resisting state authority as well as strict social controls.
Iran protests
More than 600 protests have been recorded across all of Iran’s 31 provinces, HRNA reported on Tuesday. It said the death toll has reached at least 646, while more than 10,700 people have been arrested.
Initially, the demonstrations focused on issues such as sharp increases in food prices and the country’s very high annual inflation. Over time, however, protesters have started raising anti-government statements as well.
While air strikes were among several options available to Trump, “diplomacy is always the first option for the president,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday.
Tehran said on Monday that it was keeping lines of communication open with Washington as Trump weighed his response to the situation in Iran.
The developments are seen as one of the most serious challenges to clerical rule in the country since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
With inputs from agencies
