KYIV. UkraineGate . 22 . September . 2022 | Society.
At least 31 civilians were killed in the crackdown by Iranian security forces on protests that erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini, who was arrested by the morality police, the Oslo-based Iranian human rights non-governmental organization Hengaw reported, reports AFP .
Quote
“The people of Iran took to the streets to defend their basic rights and human dignity … and the government is responding to their peaceful protest with bullets,” said Hengaw director Mahmoud Amiri-Moghaddam, publishing the death toll after six days of protests.
What preceded
Public anger has erupted in the Islamic Republic over the death last week of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained allegedly for wearing a hijab “improperly”.
Activists said that the girl suffered a fatal blow to the head.
During six nights of protests, female demonstrators defiantly removed their headscarves and burned them in bonfires or symbolically cut their hair.
“No to scarves…yes to freedom and equality!” – chanted protesters in Tehran.
Details
Iran’s state media reported that street rallies had spread to 15 cities by Thursday, with police using tear gas and arrests to disperse crowds of up to 1,000 people.
According to the official news agency IRNA, demonstrators threw stones at security forces, set fire to police cars and garbage cans, and chanted anti-government slogans.
On Thursday, Iran moved to further block access to Instagram and WhatsApp.
“According to the decision of the officials, access to Instagram in Iran is no longer possible since yesterday evening (Wednesday – ed.), and access to WhatsApp has also been disrupted,” the semi-official Fars news agency reported.
These two apps have become the most widely used in Iran after blocking other platforms in recent years, including Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, YouTube and Tiktok.
Let’s add
The current protests are some of the most serious in Iran since November 2019, sparked by rising fuel prices.
Source: Ukrgate
