protesters going violent Iran is Blowing Up

[trident]

Middle East

Iranian police kill 11, wound dozens more in protests erupting across the nation

Kosar Nawzad |

8 hours ago

 

 

---

Protesting a new hike in gas prices, Iranians gather on a highway in Tehran. (Photo: Reuters]

 

Iran Rojhilat Tehran Iran Protests

 

 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – On the second day of demonstrations that have spread to dozens of cities nationwide, Iranian security forces on Saturday killed or wounded upwards of 90 protesters mostly in Kurdish-majority regions of the country, a rights group reported.

Protests began on Friday after Tehran passed a new regulation on subsidized gasoline. The price was previously set at 10,000 rials per liter, but the government has decided to raise it by 50 percent. It also implemented a rationing scheme, doubling that to 30,000 rials per liter for anyone having already purchased 60 liters in one month.

Many Kurdish rights groups and watchdogs, including Hengaw and Kurdistan Human Rights Association (KMMK), reported on the number of casualties sustained during the demonstrations, which reportedly occurred in 30 Kurdish cities and towns.

Protesters chanted anti-government slogans and, in some cities, called for an end to Iran’s foreign ventures, which includes funding of various armed groups throughout the Middle East, from Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine, to Yemen.

Tehran has usually deployed the militant paramilitary Basij force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to crack down on protesters. 

Graphic images accompanying local reports showed people, including a teenage boy of 13, either killed or severely wounded amid a crackdown by the security forces. In the Kurdish city of Marivan (Mariwan), “a Kurdish civilian by the name of Osman Naderi and another unidentified person were killed as a result of clashes between protesters and the security forces,” according to local media organization KurdPa.

At least four deaths were reported in Mariwan, located in Kurdistan province, but major protests also took place in Javanrud (Jwanro) and Sanandaj (Sine), both in Kermanshah province. In the latter, security forces shot at demonstrators, killing one and wounding 25 others.

Hengaw has logged a total of 13 dead and 79 injured in Sine, Mariwan, and Jwanro alone. Six people each had been killed in Mariwan and Jwanro. Tehran has also almost completely shut down access to the internet, according to web blockage observatory NetBlocks.

Along with this, local authorities in the southern city of Sirjan, in Kerman Province, reportedly attempted to deter protests by sending intimidating text messages to civilians they alleged had participated in the demonstrations. Similar tactics were allegedly used in the northern region of Alborz.

A mobile phone text message that a civilian reportedly recieved after appearing in anti-government protests in the city of Karaj, Alborz Province. (Photo: Social Media)

“Your presence in today’s illegal gathering has disturbed the public order and is an abuse against the revolution,” read one such message posted on social media. It added, “Repeated presence in these gatherings will lead to prosecution,” signing the text with “Alborz Province Judiciary.”

Demonstrations have taken place on multiple occasions over Iran’s continued human rights violations, especially against minorities. Notable among these are Kurds, who make up a majority of the population in western provinces of the country but are denied political representation in the Iranian government.

The protests come amid underlying tensions between Iran and the West over Tehran’s continued violations of the 2015 nuclear accord after the unilateral withdrawal of the US from the deal and reinstitution of sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani claimed the revenue from the gasoline price hike would fund an aid scheme for low-income households, saying, “About 75 percent of people are in stressful conditions.”

Editing by John J. Catherine

[trident]

7 minutes ago, trident said:

Tehran has also almost completely shut down access to the internet, according to web blockage observatory NetBlocks.

Along with this, local authorities in the southern city of Sirjan, in Kerman Province, reportedly attempted to deter protests by sending intimidating text messages to civilians they alleged had participated in the demonstrations. Similar tactics were allegedly used in the northern region of Alborz.

A mobile phone text message that a civilian reportedly recieved after appearing in anti-government protests in the city of Karaj, Alborz Province. (Photo: Social Media)

“Your presence in today’s illegal gathering has disturbed the public order and is an abuse against the revolution,” read one such message posted on social media. It added, “Repeated presence in these gatherings will lead to prosecution,” signing the text with “Alborz Province Judiciary.”

 

[keylime]

14 hours ago, DinarThug said:

And Why Can’t A Chicken Cross The Road These Days Without Having It’s Motives Questioned ?  

 

 

Hashtag#MyChicken-MyChoice!

 

     

Depends on if they are crossing the road or cross dressing 😉

[DinarThug]

20 minutes ago, keylime said:

Depends on if they are crossing the road or cross dressing 😉

Or If The Chicken’s Named Broose - And It Used To Be A B’Rooster !  

 

     

[ametad]

Looks like Kurdish in fighting as cross multiple countries. With the Iranian Kurds at civil war with the government, Iraq Kurds at peace for now with Syrian and Turkish Kurds in the middle of a government annexation; the Kurds seem to be the common factor.

 

A true and single Kurdish state seems to be a better long term solution. That would have negative effects on the IQD value. However, it was promised to them after WWI and in my opinion are entitled to a single land for the Kurdish People.

 

I preferred the Iraq Kurdish method of referendum to voice opinion and work towards a long term goal

of a free state. I am afraid this Iran uprising is going to have a negative effect on the region. 
 

And in my wildest dreams, the USD would not have power in the region as the Gold Standard would return to the region to provide stability. The gold standard has had the longest track record of economic stability as I can see in this region. And when dream come true physical oil will have a peg on physical gold which will be the economic base. 

[Karsten]

If this is right things are really getting ugly over there.

 

 

Karsten....The Dude

[Butifldrm]

Monday، 18 November 2019 01:29 AM

36 killed, 1,000 detained in Iran’s protests in two days

 

Thirty-six people have died since protests erupted across Iran, according to Radio Farda, while the Iranian opposition reported earlier that 27 people were killed during these protests.

 

It is reported that the Iranian security forces fired tear gas to disperse protesters in Martyrs’ square in the capital, Tehran, while protests were reported across the country under a unified slogan: “The gasoline uprising.”
Fars news agency also reported that 1,000 protesters across the Islamic Republic were detained during the last 48 hours, while 100 banks had been torched.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Sunday backed the gasoline price rise that has caused nationwide protests, which he blamed on the Islamic Republic’s opponents and foreign foes.

“Some people are no doubt worried by this decision ... but sabotage and arson are done by hooligans, not our people,” the Iranian Supreme Leader said in a live speech on state TV.

Some Iranian lawmakers, who planned to discuss ways to force the government to revise its decision, withdrew their motion after Khamenei’s Sunday speech, Iran’s state media reported.

Iran’s Intelligence Ministry said in a statement reported by the Tasnim news agency that the protest leaders had been identified and “appropriate action” was being taken.

“People have the right to protest. But that is different from riots. We cannot let insecurity in the country through riots,” Iran’s Hassan Rouhani said.
Iran imposed petrol rationing and raised pump prices by at least 50 percent on Friday, saying the move was aimed at helping citizens in need with cash handouts. Anti-government protests have erupted in over 93 Iranian cities since the decision was announced.

In the meantime, the Iranian National Security Council approved a draft law to regulate fuel consumption and called on parliament to take the necessary measures to control and supervise gasoline prices so as not to harm the people, according to the Mehr news agency.

Protests have intensified and spread to more than 100 Iranian cities and territories. Iranintl.com reported that a large number of cars blocked the highway in Tehran on Sunday.

Protesters in the central city of Isfahan set ablaze a police station on Sunday.
Iran has almost completely shut off access to the internet across the country as protests over an increase in fuel prices intensified for the second day, cybersecurity NGO Netblocks confirmed in a report.

Despite the nationwide internet blackout, Iranian activists on Twitter have been taking to the social media platform to share videos and updates on the demonstrations, triggered by fuel rationing and price hikes.

https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/Story/44687/36-killed-1-000-detained-in-Iran-s-protests-in-two-days

[Butifldrm]

Monday، 18 November 2019 02:13 AM

 

Washington condemns Iran for using 'lethal force' against protesters

 

The White House on Sunday condemned protest-hit Iran for using "lethal force" against demonstrators during unrest that left two dead -- a civilian and a policeman -- and saw authorities arrest dozens and restrict internet access.

"The United States supports the Iranian people in their peaceful protests against the regime that is supposed to lead them," White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement.

"We condemn the lethal force and severe communications restrictions used against demonstrators."

The unrest erupted on Friday, hours after it was announced that the price of gas would rise to 15,000 rials per liter (12 US cents) from 10,000 for the first 60 liters, and to 30,000 rials for any extra fuel bought after that each month.

It is a rise many consumers can ill afford, given that Iran's economy has been battered since May of last year, when President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a 2015 nuclear agreement and reimposed crippling sanctions.

Access to the internet was restricted a day after the demonstrations broke out.

A policeman was shot in a clash with "rioters" in the western city of Kermanhshah on Saturday and died the following day, provincial police chief Ali Akbar Javidan said, according to IRNA state news agency.

Several people were also wounded and dozens arrested in the demonstrations that saw motorists block highways and others torch public property.

Some of the worst violence seen so far was in the central city of Sirjan, where acting governor Mohammad Mahmoudabadi said a civilian was killed and fuel stations were among the public property attacked and damaged.

https://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/Story/44688/Washington-condemns-Iran-for-using-lethal-force-against-protesters

[Butifldrm]

From the Iran-Internet demonstrations

 

Iran .. / 100 / City rising up against Khamenei

 

2019-11-18

Monitoring Iraq Solution

 

 

Is still # protests in # Iran on the path of expansion, with its deployment in more than 100 cities, despite the regime 's attempts at # Tehran to intimidate citizens and threaten them.

It has become irritated # Iranians clear enough where the Iranian leader # Ali_khamnia and those with him to get out to their balconies to watch the fires that citizens Odharmha banks, banks and government departments in the capital # Tehran .

According to a report published by the site "Sky News", what fueled the anger of the protesters # Khamenei's statement, on Sunday, when he confirmed his insistence on raising the price of gasoline by fifty to 300 percent, blaming "enemies" responsible for acts of sabotage, it seems that the "real enemies Today, millions of protesters are roaming the streets of all Iranian cities and provinces .

In turn, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani maneuvered by a narrow margin, saying that # demonstrations right of citizens but sabotage is a red line.

The comments poured more gasoline into the fire, which eats police cars, Revolutionary Guards centers and regime signs that line the streets.

Meanwhile, the images and statues of Khomeini and Khamenei have been targeted and turned into ashes because of the economic crisis that afflicts them because of the support of the mullahs' regime outside its borders at the expense of the Iranian people and their legitimate rights.

Protests erupted in Iran on Saturday, hours after announcing a 50 percent increase in gasoline prices for the first 60 liters of gasoline purchased each month, and 300 percent for each additional liter.

The protests continue, spreading to about 100 cities, with several highways closed in major cities, causing traffic jams, and others attacked public property.

The security forces used live bullets to disperse the demonstrators , resulting in dozens of deaths and injuries, as well as the arrest of more than a thousand demonstrators, according to sources from the regime and opposition.

In the midst of the protests, the Iranian authorities cut off the Internet across the country, but the demonstrators managed to circumvent this isolation by communicating with the world via alternative applications or by telephone.

See # observers that the Iranian regime had expected the protests to occur, and the adoption of a clear security plan to deal with, but they believe that all these measures will increase the pressure of the street.

https://iraq.7al.net/2019/11/18/إيران-100-مدينة-منتفضة-ضد-خامنئي/

[Butifldrm]

Khamenei dismisses deadly protests sweeping Iran, hundreds arrested in crackdown

 

Protestors block a road after authorities raised gasoline prices, in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019. AP)

Updated 18 November 2019

AFP

November 17, 201911:43

2196

White House condemns Tehran for using lethal force in responding to the demonstrations

One civilian was killed during demonstrations in the central city of Sirjan

TEHRAN: Iran’s supreme leader on Sunday threw his support behind a decision to hike petrol prices, a move that sparked nationwide unrest in which he said "some lost their lives.”

A policeman was killed in the western city of Kermanhshah in a clash with armed "rioters", the second confirmed death since protests erupted across Iran on Friday.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei blamed "hooligans" for damaging property despite widespread anger at the increases and as Iranians suffer from the country’s economic woes.

 

 

Several people were also wounded and dozens arrested in two days of demonstrations that saw motorists block highways and others attack and set fire to public property.

In a speech aired on state television, Khamenei said "some lost their lives and some centres were damaged".

The White House on Sunday condemned Iran for using "lethal force" against the demonstrators.

"The United States supports the Iranian people in their peaceful protests against the regime that is supposed to lead them," White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said.

 

 

State news agency IRNA said the protests struck more than 100 Iranian cities and towns. Iran's semi-official Fars news agency said 1,000 protesters had been arrested and 100 banks torched.

The protests flared hours after it was announced that the price of petrol would be raised by 50 percent for the first 60 litres (16 gallons) and by 300 percent for anything above that each month.

It is a rise many consumers can ill afford, given that Iran's economy has been battered since May last year when President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a 2015 nuclear agreement and reimposed crippling sanctions.

The rial has plummeted, inflation is running at more than 40 percent and the International Monetary Fund expects Iran's economy to contract by 9.5 percent this year and stagnate in 2020.

The petrol pricing plan was agreed by the High Council of Economic Coordination made up of the president, parliament speaker and judiciary chief.

NetBlocks.org✔@netblocks

Confirmed: #Iran is now in the midst of a near-total national internet shutdown; realtime network data show connectivity at 7% of ordinary levels after twelve hours of progressive network disconnections as public protests continue #IranProtests

Khamenei said that "I am not an expert and there are different opinions but I had said that if the heads of the three branches make a decision I will support it.

"The heads of the branches made a decision with the backing of expert opinion and naturally it must be implemented," he said.

"Some people would definitely get upset over this decision... but damaging and setting fire (to property) is not something (normal) people would do. It is hooligans."

 

Following his speech, parliament cancelled a motion to reverse the price hike, semi-official news agency ISNA reported.

President Hassan Rouhani defended the controversial hike in gasoline prices during Sunday’s Cabinet meeting, arguing the alternatives were less favorable.

But Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami, an expert in Iranian affairs, said that Rouhani’s remarks “may be read by protesters as a sign of weakness from the government and thus lead to raising the ceiling of popular demands, especially as most of the slogans chanted by the demonstrators hit Khamenei personally and the regime of the Islamic Republic, burning images of Khamenei and attacking the headquarters of the Basij forces.

“The coming days remain important, especially if the protests continue until Friday,” he said. “The protests are expected to widen and increase in frequency.”

Some of the worst violence was in the central city of Sirjan, where acting governor Mohammad Mahmoudabadi said a civilian was killed and fuel stations were among the public property attacked and damaged.

In Kermanshah, a policeman died Sunday, a day after a "confrontation with a number of rioters and thugs," the provincial police chief told IRNA.

In Tehran on Saturday, protesters were seen shouting slogans and burning tyres on a street.

Similar scenes were witnessed in the cities of Shiraz, Isfahan and Bushehr, where security forces fired tear gas and water cannon at demonstrators.

Forty "disruptors" were arrested in the central city of Yazd after clashing with police, the province's public prosecutor told ISNA on Sunday. Most were not locals, he added.

Police said security forces would "not hesitate to confront those disrupting peace and security and will identify the ringleaders and field forces and confront them".

The intelligence ministry said those behind the unrest "have been identified" and that measures would be taken against them, according to ISNA.

Access to the internet has been restricted since the demonstrations broke out.

Netblocks, an internet monitoring website, said late Saturday the country was in the grip of a shutdown.

"Confirmed: Iran is now in the midst of a near-total national internet shutdown; realtime network data show connectivity at 7% of ordinary levels after twelve hours of progressive network disconnections," it said on Twitter.

It came after a decision by the Supreme National Security Council, according to a report by ISNA on Sunday.

"Upon the decision of the Security Council of Iran and communicated to internet operators, access to internet has been limited as of last night and for 24 hours," it said, quoting what it called an informed source at the information and communications technology ministry.

https://www.arabnews.com/node/1585326/middle-east

[Butifldrm]

Iran condemns US show of support for ‘rioters’

 

Residents inspect the wreckage of a bus that was set ablaze by protesters in the central city of Isfahan during a demonstration against a rise in gasoline prices on Sunday, November 17, 2019. (AFP)

Updated 12 sec ago

AFP

November 18, 201907:04

364

Protests erupted in Iran on Friday, hours after it was announced the price of petrol would rise to 15,000 rials a liter

‘The dignified people of Iran know well that such hypocritical remarks do not carry any honest sympathy’

TEHRAN: Iran condemned the United States’ support for “rioters” in a statement issued late Sunday, after two days of violent protests in the Islamic republic against a petrol price hike.
The foreign ministry said that it was reacting to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s “expression of support... for a group of rioters in some cities of Iran and condemned such support and interventionist remarks.”
Protests erupted in Iran on Friday, hours after it was announced the price of petrol would rise to 15,000 rials a liter (12 US cents) from 10,000 for the first 60 liters and to 30,000 rials for any extra fuel bought after that each month.
In a tweet on Saturday, Pompeo said in response to the demonstrations that “the United States is with you.”
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi slammed his comments in Sunday night’s statement.
“The dignified people of Iran know well that such hypocritical remarks do not carry any honest sympathy,” Mousavi was quoted as saying.
“The acts of a rioter and saboteur group supported by the likes of (Pompeo) have no congruity with the conduct of the wise Iranian people.”
The statement blasted Washington’s “ill-intent” over its decision to reimpose sanctions on Tehran after the US withdrawal in May last year from the landmark 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
“It’s curious that the sympathizing is being done with the people who are under the pressure of America’s economic terrorism,” Mousavi said.

https://www.arabnews.com/node/1585711/middle-east

[MyLadiesDaddy]

 

Iran's government spokesman is saying that violent protests over government-set gas prices took police and security personnel hostage.

 

Ali Rabiei did not elaborate during remarks to journalists Monday, though the acknowledgment shows the level of unrest gripping Iran since Friday.

Rabiei says the government should soon unblock internet access across the country, and estimates attendance in demonstrations has dropped by 80% compared to the day before. Security forces have deployed heavily in many cities and towns to try to put down the unrest.

 

[Laid Back]

Iran’s protests… Is it following the same path of Iraq and Lebanon?

By Editor

 

- 4 Hours Ago

 

Iran has done its best to encircle the Iraqi uprising against the political regime based on sectarian quota , not only to defend the influence of its proxies, but to prevent the Iranian street from being inspired by this popular uprising.

But contagion soon spread to many Iranian cities in conjunction with the authorities’ decision to increase fuel prices. Interestingly, the demonstrators were inspired by the Iraqi and Lebanese model of burning the symbols of the corrupt political class in both countries. They burned the pictures of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and chanted against him, as well as burned government institutions, in a clear message that they want regime change and not just partial reforms or a retreat from the decision to raise fuel prices.

The demonstrations, according to Agence France-Presse «were between the large in the city of Sirjan and scattered in the cities of Mashhad (north) and Birjand (east) and Bandar Abbas (south) as well as in Ghashsarat and Ahvaz, Abadan, Khorramshahr and Mashher in southwestern Iran», which confirms that the crisis is growing and not limited, and that the demonstrations Sparked by high fuel prices, but as a result of other repressed and suppressed crises suffered by the Iranian people since the rise of the “velayat-e faqih” regime of Khomeini to Khamenei, which has been using the big stick to suppress demonstrators through the Basij security forces and the Revolutionary Guards, the Iranian regime’s arms to maintain survival in the rule of Iran and repression of its people.

High fuel prices are the straw that broke the camel’s back, raising prices by 50 per cent or more. Iran, which has inflation of more than 40 per cent now, and growth rate is almost non-existent, unemployment and stifling economic sanctions , all make the government treasury empty, and the country is sank in the quagmire of unemployment that has exceeded 15 per cent and financial inflation is steadily increasing in a country that is a major oil producer.

In his first comment on the outbreak of protests, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday backed a decision to increase gasoline prices and ration the distribution of gasoline, a decision taken by the government and sparked protests and anger in several Iranian cities.

“I am not an expert and there are different opinions, but I said that if the leaders of the three branches make a decision, I support it,” state television quoted Khamenei as commenting on Friday’s decision by the Supreme Council for Economic Co-ordination, made up of the president, the head of Shura Council and the head of the judiciary. The Supreme Leader blamed what he called “acts of sabotage” against opponents and foreign enemies of the Islamic Republic.

“This decision has undoubtedly made some people worried,” Khamenei said. “But acts of sabotage and arson are carried out by rioters, not our people.” Counter-revolution and Iran’s enemies have always supported and continue to do acts of sabotage and insecurity. “Unfortunately there were some problems, a number of people lost their lives and some centers were destroyed,” he added.

The Supreme Leader’s position did not differ much from what the country witnessed in the protests at the end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018, where Khamenei accused Iran’s ‘enemies’ of ‘conspiring against it,’ and that ‘the enemies united using their means, money, weapons, politics and security services to create problems for the Islamic regime of Iran ‘.

Khamenei said that some opponents of the current regime in Iran “cheered” two days ago, referring to the Pahlavi family, which was ousted by the Islamic revolution in 1979, as well as the movement of the People’s Mujahedeen organization of Iran in exile, the Mujahedin –e Khalq, which Iran considers a terrorist organization.

Regardless of the many paradoxes of Iranian official’s remarks , the biggest contradiction is that the Iranian authorities are aware of the enormous impact of this decision on the poor , as statements reassure the public that the authorities will distribute the proceeds of price increases to 18 million poor families , but this recognition of the burden imposed on the people , not only been ignored and rejected , but hundreds of thousands of people who took to the streets to protest have been considered as traitors as “enemies of the revolution “. If we add to the extreme violence that has been directed at the protests, the expected outcome is that the Iranian masses will raise the ceiling of confrontation also.

The authorities are trying to end the protests without a severe security confrontation that leaves high numbers of dead and wounded, making it difficult to control, especially as the regime lives under the pressure of its external losses due to the collapse of the sectarian system in Iraq, and the shaking of the political sectarian combination behind which Hezbollah conceals to tighten its grip on Lebanon.

Observers believe that these demonstrations add further pressure on the regime, which is already suffering under the weight of US economic sanctions. They point out that the increase in fuel prices, which reached about 50 percent, led to large and violent demonstrations in various parts of the country, some of which burned pictures of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

They say these demonstrations could turn into a serious threat to the Iranian regime as a whole if they continue for a long time and on the President Hassan Rouhani in particular, ahead of the parliamentary elections due in the coming February because they illustrate the impact of low income, high unemployment and the collapse of the value of riyal’s local currency.
They point out that despite these demonstrations, Iran remains, after the recent increase, among the countries that provide fuel to its citizens at the lowest prices in the world, where the price of a liter about 15 thousand riyals equivalent to 35 pence, pointing out that “something citizens expect simply because the country has huge oil reserves and is the fourth largest country in the world in this regard.

Observers say that the Iranian authorities do not want to open a new facade at home after various shocks abroad, especially with regard to the tightening of US sanctions on the oil sector, and banks in Iran, in response to targeting the security of navigation, a strong message pressing Tehran to review its regional performance and underestimate the interests of neighboring countries and major powers.

They pointed out that Khamenei could no longer resort to conspiracy theory by accusing the United States or Israel of triggering the demonstrations, because this charge no longer tempted the Iranian street, including those who applauded his slogans and fatwa , as happened in Iraq.

They say the growing US pressure, coupled with popular discontent among many Iranians over the economic situation, is shaking the regime with little indication that its leaders have any solutions. It also revealed a high degree of administrative corruption in the country.

Iran ‘s crises are not in the fuel , they are accumulated, and are further exacerbated by sanctions imposed by US President Donald Trump under the strategy of “extreme pressure” against the regime in Iran, ending the exemptions that allowed some countries to buy Iranian oil.

International sanctions on the Iranian regime, in return for the Iranian economic stagnation, unemployment, and increased corruption and corrupt between supporters of the regime .

The Iranian regime has increased its stalemate since it announced the resumption of uranium enrichment at the Fordow facility, in violation of the nuclear deal , this has put the regime in a collision with international system , which is internally incoherent , even in its geography that it has made by its standards . Iran, which swallowed the Arab state of Ahwaz, after displacing its Arab inhabitants and replacing them with the aim of changing the demography of the region, which is an extension of the Arab geography, and suppressed its inhabitants, to the extent that they were prevented from talking by their Arabic language, and used in the streets of Ahwaz, which was called the Arabistan, the Arab countries.

In Iran, even the “reformists” have disappointed the street, and it turns out that they are part of an Iranian regime, merely people in the choir of an arrogant tyrannical regime with the greatest file of human rights violations and executions based on identity and belief in the streets.

The Iranian crisis is big and worsening, and If the Iranian regime does not wake up from its coma and its mental separation from reality, the results will be catastrophic, although the crisis will inevitably end with its demise, even the time goes on , we hope it will not end with a painful big blood bill for the Iranian people.

It is really strange that Iran’s current rulers forget that they did not inherit power like kings but came as a result of a mass popular revolution 40 years ago , and that the thousands who sacrificed their lives , and the tens of thousands who were arrested and tortured to secure the victory of that revolution , were dreaming of a state that preserves their dignity , secures justice and development and stop repression , oppression , torture and corruption.

According to the head of the Iranian President office , Mahmoud Vaizi , the decision to raise fuel prices was not taken by the government alone , but was co-endorsed by the executive judicial , and legislative authorities . If this does not contradict the call by 60 deputies in parliament to hold President Rouhani accountable , it is especially evident in Khamenei’s violent remarks that there is a disparity among officials , some of whom we heard earlier , warns of these protests and calls for curbing corruption and tackling growing misery and poverty .

Every time protests emerge, the authorities in Iran have affirmed their use of repression, which may be viable at times but certainly will not succeed every time, and the protests could turn into another revolution, no one knows its extent. The question is whether Iran’s protests are following the same path of Iraq and Lebanon.

Unit of Iranian Studies
Rawabet Center for Research and Strategic Studies

https://rawabetcenter.com/en/?p=7536

[DoD]

Well maybe Iran will stop killing the Iraqi protesters now because their to busy shooting their own...

[Karsten]

Iran shuts down nearly all internet access in response to fuel protests

 

 

https://www.engadget.com/2019/11/17/iran-shuts-down-internet-access-fuel-protests/?fbclid=IwAR3rkfVoa9iFQL_SSsFObWMOjN7CZfGaBotSyrPGSwKY7iPApLKiEGCOmKc

 

Karsten...The Dude

[MyLadiesDaddy]

It's onething to protest, but it's entirely another thing when you know you could die for what you do. 

 

 

 

[horsesoldier]

Very very brave Women & Men over there. 

[jaman]

still waiting for le mount James to jump in here

[Butifldrm]

 

 

[MyLadiesDaddy]

It would appear that the entirety of the Middle East is about to implode. 

Lebanon is about to collapse. 

 

 

BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,348, November 18, 2019

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Israel’s neighbor to the north is gripped by a popular uprising that many fear could lead to civil war.

Faced with the spectacle of hundreds of thousands of citizens protesting in the streets of Lebanon, PM Saad Hariri has submitted a letter of resignation to Lebanese President Michel Aoun.

For the past weeks the streets of Lebanon have been aflame. The country has been paralyzed despite the prognostications of all the experts who thought the demonstrations would wither away swiftly.

What they failed to grasp is that what is at hand is a popular revolt against the corrupt and inept political system that has driven Lebanon into a severe economic depression.

Lebanon operates like a mafia. Its 128 members of parliament, as well as its cabinet ministers, plunder the public coffers via an intricate web of businesses, hotels, shops, and real estate holdings they run on the side. There is no real separation between the political systems and the tycoons. In Lebanese politics, if you can attain a public/government position you’re going to be rich.

The Lebanese people have finally had enough and unleashed mass protests against the rampaging corruption while putting forth specific demands. These include the resignation of the entire political leadership, including the PM, president, chairman of the parliament, and all ministers and members of parliament – in other words, a complete overhaul. Until elections can be held, they are demanding that the politicians be replaced by independent technocrats who have had nothing to do with Lebanese politics going all the way back to the Civil War of 1991.

A small number of families have controlled Lebanon for a long time, and they have become indescribably wealthy and thoroughly corrupt. Take, for example, the family of President Michel Aoun. His two daughters are employed as presidential advisors. One of their husbands is his foreign minister. The other, who is divorced from the daughter, continues to serve as a consultant.

No judge, jury, or media outlet bothers to question this nepotism. That is because Lebanon is made up of 18 different communities (the smallest of which, the Jewish, numbers only a few dozen). Almost every community has its own institutions and media outlets, and they are concerned solely with promoting their own members. Government employees are recruited from within each group on the basis of family and personal connections rather than professional qualifications. The entire system is corrupt, including the media and the judicial system, which routinely panders to politicians and their dictates.

The demonstrators are also demanding new elections and the establishment of an oversight body that will include untainted judges who will expose politicians’ secret bank accounts, prosecute corrupt politicians, and return misappropriated funds to the state. Lebanon’s politicians have a long tradition of enriching themselves at the expense of the citizens, many of whom can’t pay their monthly bills.

Lebanon is a small country encompassing just over 10,000 square kilometers (3,800 square miles), yet it carries a $100 billion debt. Lebanese banks are unable to meet this debt and are not even able to return interest on their loans. Adding to this problem, the banks have shut down since the beginning of the protests. Complicating the situation even further are the sanctions imposed by President Donald Trump on Lebanese banks for working with Hezbollah and Iran.

The entire system is on the verge of collapse.

The strength of the protests lies in its being not only a grassroots movement without permanent leadership but also in its representing a stand against all power players, including Hezbollah. One of the most popular slogans of the protest is “Nasrallah is one of them” (i.e., a corrupt politician). This sentiment was expressed after the Hezbollah leader gave two speeches in which he threatened the demonstrators and falsely accused them of taking funds from foreign agencies. Hezbollah operatives have tried to intimidate the demonstrators, but the Lebanese police intervened to defend them. Nasrallah has not yet succeeded in shaking the resolve of the demonstrators.

Some demonstrators tried to burn the Israeli flag but were stopped by other protesters. “We are demonstrating against corrupt politicians. We must not lose focus,” they said as they put an end to the flag-burning.

The protests are having an impact. The attempts to smear Israel as being behind the movement have failed. The PM resigned in a show of support for the demonstrators, leaving the other politicians in serious trouble.

No one has a solution, and the people in the streets of Lebanon are boiling mad. The future is unclear, and another civil war may well be on the horizon. One thing seems clear – the Lebanese are not giving up anytime soon, and they appear willing to go all the way to bring about radical change in their country.

 

[coorslite21]

I'll add here the entire world....Hong Kong...Chile.....Bolivia..France.....to name a few......lots of unrest......geopolitical and financial........poof......and then comes currency reform....

JMO.      CL

[justchecking123]

22 hours ago, ladyGrace'sDaddy said:

It's onething to protest, but it's entirely another thing when you know you could die for what you do. 

 

 

 

Damn...

 

Thanks for posting, LGD.

[haymon]

WARS AND RUMORS OF WAR. MAN I HOPE THEY GET THIS THING SETTLED AND FINALIZED BEFORE THE END COMES. LOL

CANT TAKE IT WITH US....

Edited November 19, 2019 by haymon

[MyLadiesDaddy]

1 hour ago, haymon said:

WARS AND RUMORS OF WAR. MAN I HOPE THEY GET THIS THING SETTLED AND FINALIZED BEFORE THE END COMES. LOL

CANT TAKE IT WITH US....

I read a story once about a man who was going to die. His Angel came to him and told him because he was very wealthy and kind to the poor that he could bring one thing with him to Heaven. 

So after he died at the Pearly Gates St. Peter saw that he was struggling with a suitcase. St. Peter asked the man what was in the bag, the man relayed to St. Peter what the Angel told him and said I brought a bag full of GOLD. 

St. Peter looked at the man in a most confusing manner and asked, 

Of all the things you could have brought why did you bring paving material?

 

Just a thought 

[nannab]

  LGD