There was a high security presence in the streets of Iran due to government fears over the commemoration of the November protests. Family members had invited protesters to the grave sites of those killed in the protests to mark the passage of 40 days, which has a particularly important significance in Shiite Islam.

The first sign that the government had prepared to block all commemorations came with the news of internet disruptions in various provinces. The Iranian Labor News Agency reported that the internet blackout was limited to a few provinces and domestic connections were not disrupted.

Ahead of the planned protests, authorities arrested the family members of Pouya Bakhtiari, one of the protesters killed in November. According to BBC Persian, eight members of Bakhtiari's family were arrested ahead of the gathering, including his parents, sister, brother-in-law and an 11-year-old cousin. 

Bakhtiari was shot in the head at a protest in Mehrshahr area of Karaj, west of the capital Tehran, on Nov. 16. He had attended a local protest with his mother but was separated in the chaos after tear gas was used. His mother recounted that the next she saw of her son was his body carried by the police.