Anti-government protests in Iran: death toll reaches 116, communications and internet access remain limited
Фото: REUTERS
Protests against the theocratic regime in Iran have been ongoing for two weeks, with activists saying at least 116 people have died. The Iranian government is stepping up its crackdown, and international communications and internet access remain limited, making it difficult to assess the scale of the events.
This is reported by The Associated Press .
The protests began on December 28th, sparked by the collapse of the Iranian currency and economic pressure from international sanctions. They later escalated into open calls for a change of government and a challenge to the existing theocracy.
The government has shut down the internet and telephone services in most regions. Despite this, protesters have taken to the streets of Tehran, Mashhad and other cities. According to activists, as of January 11, at least 116 people have been killed and more than 2,600 have been detained .
Iran’s state broadcaster reported casualties among security forces, calling the dead protesters “terrorists.” It also confirmed that protests continued into Sunday morning.
“Prosecutors must carefully and without delay, by issuing indictments, prepare the grounds for trial and decisively confront those who betray the nation and create instability,” said Iran’s Prosecutor General Mohammad Movaedi Azad.
US President Donald Trump expressed support for the protesters, noting on social media: “Iran is getting closer to FREEDOM, perhaps like never before. The US stands ready to help!!!”
According to journalists, on Friday, demonstrators in northern Tehran took to the streets in their thousands.
“Death to Khamenei!” chanted one of the protesters.
Meanwhile, Fars news agency published video from Isfahan showing a protester using firearms while others set fire to objects and threw petrol bombs, as well as funeral services in the city of Qom attended by hundreds of people.
Iran’s exiled prince Reza Pahlavi called on citizens to take to the streets on Saturday and Sunday, using national symbols and flags from the period before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Airlines, including Austrian Airlines and Turkish Airlines, have canceled some flights to Iran due to protests and the unstable situation.
Human rights activists fear that restricting access to the internet will allow security forces to harshly disperse demonstrations, as was the case in previous waves of protests.
“They are fighting and dying against a dictatorial regime,” said Ali Rahmani, the son of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, who is imprisoned in Iran.
Earlier it was reported that massive anti-government protests are ongoing in Iran, which have spread to dozens of cities across the country . According to human rights activists, the death toll in the unrest has risen to at least 65 people.
As is known,a wave of mass protests has erupted in Iran, caused by the rapid fall of the national currency and the worsening economic crisis . Against the backdrop of the collapse of the Iranian rial, the ayatollah regime is increasingly losing control of the situation, which is causing open resistance in various regions of the country.
Subsequently, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei prepared a plan to flee the country in case anti-government protests escalated and control over the security forces was lost.
On the eve, Trump said that the United States could intervene in Iran’s internal affairs if peaceful protests were brutally suppressed. He stressed that the United States is ready to support the demonstrators if the Iranian authorities use lethal force.
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