Status: 11/21/2022 2:52 p.m
Especially in the Kurdish areas of Iran, the protests against the state leadership continue. Eyewitnesses report that security forces opened fire on civilians there. Civil war-like scenes are said to have taken place.
According to eyewitnesses, scenes similar to civil wars took place during protests in Kurdish regions in western and northwestern Iran. There were violent clashes in the cities of Janrud and Piranshahr, with Iranian security forces reportedly shooting at demonstrators indiscriminately.
Police forces with tanks marched into the city of Mahabad on Sunday and are said to have opened fire on people indiscriminately. According to local residents, there are said to have been several dead and injured. The descriptions from the Kurdish areas could not be verified independently.
According to Iraqi reports, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards also bombed the Kurdish areas of northern Iraq. The regime in Tehran accuses the Iranian-Kurdish exile groups there of fueling the nationwide protests in Iran.
Apparently hundreds dead
The uprisings were sparked by the death of the young Kurd Mahsa Amini on September 16th. The 22-year-old was arrested by the police in her hometown of Sakes because she is said to have worn her headscarf improperly. She died a short time later in hospital. Activists accuse the police of abusing Amini.
Since then, thousands have taken to the streets – especially in the Kurdish areas in the west of the country. Human rights activists estimate that thousands of Iranians were arrested and hundreds killed during the protests. The Iranian authorities describe most of the demonstrators as “rioters” who are being exploited by foreign powers and are cracking down on the protests with all their might.
actresses arrested
The state leadership is also taking increasingly repressive action against the cultural sector. According to the dpa news agency, two well-known actresses, Hengameh Ghasiani and Katajun Riahi, were arrested after taking off their headscarves in public.
Ghasian, who has consistently criticized the regime for its violent response to the protests, posted a video of her removing her headscarf. “Maybe this will be my last post,” she wrote. “Whatever happens to me, you should know that I will stand with the Iranian people until my last breath.” Riahi had also shown solidarity with the protest movement.
Sixth death sentence imposed
According to the Iranian judiciary, seven other celebrities from film, sports and politics were also summoned by the public prosecutor. Among them is Jahja Golmohammadi, coach of the Tehran football club Persepolis FC. He had criticized the players of the Iranian national team for “not bringing the voice of the oppressed people to the authorities”.
Meanwhile, another man has been sentenced to death in connection with the protests. The Revolutionary Court in Tehran found him guilty of “pulling a knife during the recent unrest with the intention of killing, spreading terror and unsettling society,” according to the Iranian judiciary. It is the sixth death sentence imposed in connection with the demonstrations.
Iran accuses West of destabilizing
The Iranian leadership accuses the United States, Great Britain, Israel and Saudi Arabia, among others, of supporting the protest movement and thus destabilizing the country. In early November, Iran announced the development of a hypersonic missile.