Iranian authorities have arrested two men seen in a viral video wearing military uniforms and carrying the flag of the former monarchy — a rare public display of dissent that quickly spread across social media and triggered a quick response from the regime.

The footage, recorded inside a Tehran metro station, shows the pair holding the blue-and-gold “lion and sun” banner used during the rule of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi before the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The emblem, long banned from official use, has become a potent symbol for monarchists and anti-regime demonstrators, particularly during the nationwide protests of recent years.

Fars news agency, which is affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, reported Thursday that the two men were detained after an investigation determined they were not members of the Iranian armed forces. Their identities were not made public.

“The two men were arrested for abusing the military uniforms,” Fars said, adding that authorities are pursuing additional inquiries into the incident. Other state-linked outlets carried similar reports.

The incident comes amid tensions inside Iran, where grievances over economic conditions, political repression and the treatment of women continue to fuel periodic unrest. Symbols associated with the pre-revolutionary monarchy — once relegated to exile communities — have resurfaced as younger generations challenge the Islamic Republic’s authority.

Iran’s tricolor national flag was redesigned after the 1979 revolution, replacing the “lion and sun” emblem with a stylized red symbol representing the word “Allah” in tulip form. Displaying the old flag inside Iran is widely viewed by authorities as a provocation or an expression of opposition to the ruling system.

Security forces have cracked down aggressively on similar symbolic acts over the past two years, arresting activists who displayed banned imagery or chanted slogans associated with the protest movement.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)