The number of non-veiled women has increased in Iran, and the judiciary has vowed to prosecute

[yota691]

Iranian authorities arrest hundreds of protesters in the north of the country

2022.09.26 - 13:11

 

Baghdad - people  

The Iranian authorities arrested 450 new demonstrators in northern Iran, where they had arrested 700 other people for participating in protests against the death of a young woman who was arrested by the morality police, according to an official media outlet on Monday.  

  

  

  

"During the unrest in recent days, 450 rioters were arrested in Mazandaran," the official IRNA news agency quoted Mohammad Karimi as saying.  

On Saturday, the authorities announced the arrest of 739 demonstrators, including 60 women, in Gilan province, adjacent to Mazandaran in the north of the country.  

Protests erupted on September 16 in Iran, the day Mahsa Amini died three days after she was arrested in Tehran on charges of “improper clothing” and violating the strict dress code for women in the Islamic Republic of Iran, in particular the wearing of the hijab.  

The protests spread to several cities across the country, where the demonstrators chanted slogans against the authority, according to what was reported by local media.  

These protests are the largest since the November 2019 demonstrations, which resulted from the rise in gasoline prices in the midst of the economic crisis, and included about a hundred Iranian cities and were subjected to severe repression (230 people were killed according to the official toll, and more than 300 according to Amnesty International).  

"In recent days, rioters attacked government departments and damaged public property in some areas of Mazandaran under the direction of foreign agents," Karimi said.  

And on Sunday, the head of the judiciary in Iran called for "no tolerance" with the demonstrators  

Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei stressed the "necessity of dealing without any leniency" with the instigators of the "riots", according to the Judicial Authority News Agency, "Mizan Online".  

According to an undisaggregated official toll that includes demonstrators and security forces, 41 people were killed during the protests that have continued for ten days. But the toll may be greater, as the Oslo-based non-governmental organization "Iran Human Rights" announced the killing of at least 57 protesters.  

On Monday, the Tasnim news agency published about twenty pictures of demonstrators, including women, in several streets in the city of Qom, about 150 kilometers south of the capital.  

The agency said that the military and security institutions published these pictures showing "rioters" and that they called on residents to "identify them and inform the authorities."  

  

Source: "AFP + IRNA"

[yota691]

AFP: Iran intensifies pressure on journalists, actors and celebrities due to growing protests

2022.09.30 - 07:59

 

Baghdad - people  

Iran has intensified pressure on journalists and celebrities against the backdrop of a wave of demonstrations in the country following the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, days after her arrest by the morality police.  

  

  

Filmmakers, athletes, musicians and actors voiced their support for the protests, even as Iran's soccer players wore black tracksuits during the national anthem before their match with Senegal in Vienna.  

"We will take measures against celebrities who contributed to fueling the riots," ISNA news agency quoted Tehran Governor Mohsen Mansouri as saying Thursday.  

The protests, the largest since 2019, erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, on September 16, three days after her arrest by the morality police.  

He was accused of violating the very strict dress code followed in Iran, which specifically stipulates that women wear the veil.  

  

Red line  

The head of the judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, criticized the celebrities, saying, "Those who became famous for supporting the regime during difficult days joined the enemy instead of standing by the people, and everyone should realize that he has to compensate for the material and moral damage he caused to the Iranian people."  

As for Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, he warned that despite the "pain and sadness" caused by Amini's death, "the safety of people is a red line for the Islamic Republic of Iran and no one is authorized to break the law and create chaos."  

And on Thursday, a journalist who covered the funeral of Mahsa Amini was arrested, according to what her lawyer said. This came after the arrest of journalist Nilofar Hamdi from "Al-Sharq" newspaper, who went to the hospital, where Mahasa Amini was in a coma and contributed to the publication of the case.  

Iran's Fars news agency reported that "about 60 people" have been killed since the demonstrations began, while the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights Organization indicates that at least 76 people have been killed.  

Iran attributed these demonstrations to external forces, and on Wednesday launched missile strikes and other marches that killed 13 people in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, accusing armed groups based in this region of fomenting unrest.  

On Thursday, Iran summoned the French Chargé d'Affairs, denouncing France's "interference" in Iran's internal affairs, after Paris condemned the "violent repression" of the demonstrations.  

For its part, Germany called Thursday for the imposition of European sanctions on Iran.  

  

'ruthless violence'  

Demonstrations of solidarity with Iranian women were organized in different parts of the world, and gatherings are scheduled to be held in 70 cities on Saturday.  

In Afghanistan, the Taliban broke up a gathering in front of the Iranian embassy in Kabul for Afghan women who came to support the Iranian demonstrators. Taliban forces fired in the air and tried to hit the demonstrators with rifle butts, AFP journalists reported.  

In a statement to the "Fars" news agency, the Revolutionary Guards' intelligence said that its members arrested 50 members of an "organized network" behind the "riots" in the holy city of Qom.  

For its part, Amnesty International criticized the "generalized practices of security forces' illegal use of force and merciless violence."  

The London-based NGO stated, in particular, the use of live bullets and iron pellets, beatings and sexual assaults on women with "continuous and deliberate disruption of the Internet and mobile phones".  

"Dozens of people were killed, including children, and hundreds were wounded," said Agnès Callamard, the organization's secretary general.  

  

  

Quoted from AFP  

[yota691]

Amnesty International accuses Iran of using lethal substances to suppress protesters

2022.09.30 - 18:09

 

Baghdad - people  

On Friday, Amnesty International accused Iran of using lethal means to suppress the protests that erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini, noting that without international action, more people could be killed or arrested.  

  

  

  

The warning came while another non-governmental organization, "Iran Human Rights" (Iranian Human Rights), based in Oslo, announced that 83 people were killed during about two weeks of protests against the death of Iranian Mahsa Amini, 22, after her arrest by the morality police.  

  

The organization confirmed that it examined photos and videos showing that most of the "victims were killed by security forces who fired live ammunition."  

  

Amnesty stated that on September 21, it obtained a leaked official document asking officers who command the armed forces in the governorates to "respond violently" to the demonstrators.  

  

In another document dated September 23, the commander of the armed forces in Mazandaran province - where some of the fiercest clashes took place - ordered the security forces to "respond to any demonstration of rioters mercilessly, even causing death", according to the NGO.  

  

Amnesty said it could confirm 52 people were killed in the protests, but the toll was likely higher.  

  

Amnesty International's call comes as an escalating crackdown continues, which has also resulted in the arrest of a large number of journalists, activists and other public figures.  

  

The official Iranian news agency (IRNA) stated that the former Iranian international football player, Hossein Manahi, was arrested, on Friday, after he expressed his support for the demonstrations on his social media accounts.  

  

According to the human rights organization, “Article 19” and Iranian media abroad reported that Iranian security forces also arrested singer Sherwin Hajipour after his song “Barai” (“for”), which consists of tweets about the demonstrations, was spread on the Instagram application and was watched by millions. times.  

  

The Washington-based Committee to Protect Journalists reported that 29 journalists were arrested as part of the crackdown.  

  

Quoted from "Free" 

[yota691]

19 people, including an officer in the Revolutionary Guards, were killed in violent clashes in southern Iran

2022.09.30 - 23:21

 

Baghdad - people  

19 people, including an officer of the Revolutionary Guards, were killed during violent clashes, on Friday, in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan, according to state television.  

  

  

It was not immediately clear whether the clashes were linked to the wave of unrest in Iran since the death of the young Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, days after she was arrested by the morality police earlier this month.  

  

"19 people were killed and 20 others were injured in the incident," district governor Hussain Khayabani told the channel.  

  

The television added that "the commander of the intelligence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Sistan-Baluchestan, Colonel Ali Mousavi, was killed."  

  

The impoverished region of Sistan-Baluchestan, bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan, witnesses frequent clashes with drug-trafficking gangs, insurgents from the Baluch minority and Sunni extremist groups.  

  

And state media reported earlier, on Friday, that "the security forces responded to gunfire carried out by gunmen who targeted a police station in the provincial capital, Zahedan."  

  

State television confirmed that "a number of policemen and passersby were wounded in the exchange of fire."  

  

  

Source: AFP  

[yota691]

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard issued a statement after the killing of its officers and members in the Zahedan clashes

2022.10.01 - 09:55

 

Baghdad - people   

The "Salman" Corps of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard issued a statement in the Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchestan, after the killing of 19 people, including an intelligence commander of the guards, after an attack by gunmen on a police station in Zahedan.  

  

  

In his statement, the "Salman" Corps said: "The honorable people of Zahedan and those who gave birth to the martyrs witnessed yesterday afternoon, after Friday prayers in Zahedan, a bitter and unfortunate incident, an attack launched by wicked and armed terrorists, agents of global arrogance and mercenaries of the Army of Injustice faction (which calls itself the Army of Justice). After that, they opened fire blindly and criminally in the streets and public roads in the city, which was followed by a clash that led to the death of a number of separatists and the injury of a number of security, military and police elements, and a number of citizens.  

The "Salman Corps" confirmed that "the Revolutionary Guards and the rest of the intelligence and security forces and the police will respond firmly to the acts of division and the crimes of mercenaries."  

  

Brigadier General Seyed Hamid Reza Hashemi, deputy commander of the "Salman" Corps for intelligence affairs in the Revolutionary Guards in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, was killed in the clash in this attack.  

  

And 19 people, including an officer of the Revolutionary Guards, were killed during violent clashes, Friday, in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan, according to state television.  

  

Governor Hussein Khayabani told the channel that "19 people were killed and 20 others were injured in the incident."    

  

The television added that "the commander of the intelligence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Sistan-Baluchestan, Colonel Ali Mousavi, was killed."    

  

The impoverished region of Sistan-Baluchestan, bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan, witnesses frequent clashes with drug-trafficking gangs, insurgents from the Baluch minority and Sunni extremist groups.    

  

And state media reported earlier, on Friday, that "the security forces responded to gunfire carried out by gunmen who targeted a police station in the provincial capital, Zahedan."    

  

State television confirmed that "a number of policemen and passersby were wounded in the exchange of fire."    

[yota691]

The number of Revolutionary Guards killed in clashes in southeast Iran

2022.10.01 - 12:00

 

Baghdad - people  

On Saturday, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced the death of a second senior officer from wounds sustained in clashes with militants in the southeast of the country.  

 

 

A statement from the guards said, "Colonel Hamid Reza Hashemi, another member of the Revolutionary Guards' intelligence service, died of wounds sustained in Friday's clashes with terrorists."  

  

This brings the number of those killed Friday in Sistan Baluchestan (southeast) to twenty, including two colonels of the Revolutionary Guards, in clashes described by the Governor of Sistan Baluchestan, Hussein Mudarres Khaybani, as "accidents."  

  

  

And the "Salman" Corps of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard issued a statement in the Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchestan, after the killing of 19 people, including an intelligence commander of the guard, after an attack by gunmen on a police station in Zahedan.  

In his statement, the "Salman" Corps said: "The honorable people of Zahedan and those who gave birth to the martyrs witnessed yesterday afternoon, after Friday prayers in Zahedan, a bitter and unfortunate incident, an attack launched by wicked and armed terrorists, agents of global arrogance and mercenaries of the Army of Injustice faction (which calls itself the Army of Justice). After that, they opened fire blindly and criminally in the streets and public roads in the city, which was followed by a clash that led to the death of a number of separatists and the injury of a number of security, military and police elements, and a number of citizens.    

The "Salman Corps" confirmed that "the Revolutionary Guards and the rest of the intelligence and security forces and the police will respond firmly to the acts of division and the crimes of mercenaries."    

  

Brigadier General Seyed Hamid Reza Hashemi, deputy commander of the "Salman" Corps for intelligence affairs in the Revolutionary Guards in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, was killed in the clash in this attack.    

  

And 19 people, including an officer of the Revolutionary Guards, were killed during violent clashes, Friday, in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan, according to state television.  

  

Governor Hussein Khayabani told the channel that "19 people were killed and 20 others were injured in the incident."      

  

The television added that "the commander of the intelligence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Sistan-Baluchestan, Colonel Ali Mousavi, was killed."      

  

The impoverished region of Sistan-Baluchestan, bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan, witnesses frequent clashes with drug-trafficking gangs, insurgents from the Baluch minority and Sunni extremist groups.      

  

And state media reported earlier, on Friday, that "the security forces responded to gunfire carried out by gunmen who targeted a police station in the provincial capital, Zahedan."      

  

State television confirmed that "a number of policemen and passersby were wounded in the exchange of fire."  

[yota691]

Opinion: Iranians only want one thing: replacement of the terrorist regime

Author of the article:

Mandana (Mandy) Sobhanzadeh

Publishing date:

Oct 01, 2022  •  34 minutes ago  •  3 minute read  • 

 

A woman cuts her hair during a protest against the Islamic regime of Iran and the death of Mahsa Amini in New York City, New York, U.S., September 27, 2022. PHOTO BY STEPHANIE KEITH /REUTERS

 

Iran’s Islamic regime is the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world. The regime’s greatest victims are the Iranian people.

 

 

Iranians have been fighting to be free for the last 43 years. A series of protests have broken out in Iran after the killing of a 22-year-old Iranian woman, Mahsa Amini, who was beaten to death by the morality police in Tehran.

 

Now the regime is killing the protesters and, as before, they have shut down the internet to cut off the people from the outside world to conceal their crimes and violations of human rights.

 

During Iran’s November 2019 protests, the authorities killed over 3,000 people in only three days and carried out mass arrests in its aftermath. As in the previous protests in Iran, the regime’s security forces are using lethal force unlawfully against the vast majority of protesters, shooting them in the head and beating protesters with batons with the intent to kill.  

 

The protests in Iran are not about modifying the morality police and hijab rules. Iranians are fighting to overthrow a terrorist regime that, among its other crimes, had banned the purchase and import of COVID-19 vaccines made in the U.S. and the U.K. that would have prevented the deaths of thousands of unvaccinated citizens.

 

They want to overthrow a terrorist regime that has destroyed the natural ecological balance of the country due to corruption and mismanagement and has imprisoned and killed environmentalists.

 

They want to overthrow a terrorist regime that is one of the most discriminatory towards LGBT people.

 

They want to overthrow a terrorist regime that has killed hundreds of thousands of peaceful protesters and political prisoners since 1979 and to overthrow a terrorist regime whose Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intentionally shot down the Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 that took the lives of 176 passengers (55 Canadians and 30 permanent residents) and crew.

 

Even though Canada’s House of Commons passed a motion in June 2018 to immediately list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization, no action has been taken by the federal government so far. The IRGC must be immediately listed as a terrorist organization and an explanation is expected as to why there has been a four-year delay.  

 

I was born in Iran during the Iran-Iraq war. My parents had to leave their hometown, Abadan, after Iraqis managed to surround it on three sides. They moved to the Isfahan province, where I was born.

 

The two pillars of Ruhollah Khomeini’s rule were exporting the “Islamic Revolution” and domestic repression. The war enabled the regime to justify domestic repression. Therefore, the Iran-Iraq war that could have ended as early as 1982 was pursued by Khomeini until 1988.

 

My childhood memories are full of stories about running into the underground shelters, air raid sirens, rising smoke from the civilian areas as well as the oil refinery facilities and the sounds of the windows shaking due to the warplanes bombing.

 

The regime in Iran stole my dreams, my childhood and my youth. I left my country in 2005 and was always scared of travelling back to Iran due to the regime’s arbitrary detention of foreign and dual nationals for political and economic gains.

 

In 2019, my dad in Iran was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer and I took the risk to travel to see him. I was questioned at the airport about my university major, my job and the reasons why I live in Canada. While answering the questions, I was thinking about imploring them to let me see my father only for one minute if they ended up arresting me. It was the last time I was in Iran.

 

My father knew how bad his cancer was and begged me not to attend his funeral if he did not survive it. My father passed away in February 2021 and I was not able to be at his bedside and hold his hand.  

 

He was a man who always encouraged me to stand by my values and not to remain silent in the face of injustice.

 

The world powers should know that talking and condemning the regime in Iran is not enough. Iran needs urgent global action. Hundreds of pages are needed to list the regime’s crimes since 1979. There are simply no limits to this regime’s brutality.

 

After 43 years, Iranians are united and what they want can be summarized in two words: regime change. The regime must be brought down in the interest of all Iranians and the world.

 

Mandana (Mandy) Sobhanzadeh is an associate professor at Mount Royal University. She has a PhD in physics.

[yota691]

World rallies in solidarity with Iran protests over Mahsa Amini death

Demonstrators in Tokyo hold pictures of Mahsa Amini during the "Freedom rally for Iran" - Philip FONG

Agence France-Presse

 

October 1, 2022 — Paris (AFP)

Iranians based abroad and their supporters gathered in cities around the world Saturday in solidarity with protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the country's notorious morality police.

A wave of street violence has rocked Iran since Amini, 22, died days after her arrest by the morality police for allegedly failing to observe the Islamic republic's strict dress code for women.

Protests were held across Iran for a 15th consecutive night on Friday, despite a bloody crackdown that a rights group says has claimed more than 80 lives.

 

 

"Woman, life, freedom" and "Death to the dictator", they chanted in the streets of Amini's hometown of Saqqez, in Kurdistan province.

Riot police massed Saturday at major intersections in Tehran, amid reports of demonstrations at universities to seek the release of arrested students.

The 1500tasvir social media channel shared video footage of large demonstrations in the capital, as well as the shrine city of Mashhad and Kermanshah in the west.

Demonstrations in support of the movement are being held meanwhile in 159 cities across the globe -- from Auckland to New York and Seoul to Zurich, according to the Iranians for Justice and Human Rights group.

"Be our voice," was the catchcry of a protest in the eastern Australian city of Brisbane, where organisers said thousands from the Iranian diaspora demanded freedoms in their homeland.

In Tokyo, demonstrators waved pictures of Amini and other women who defiantly burned their headscarves and cut their hair during the Iranian protests.

- Arrest of foreigners -

The protests flared in Iran on September 16, when Amini was pronounced dead three days after falling into a coma following her arrest.

Oslo-based Iran Human Rights group says at least 83 people have been killed in the crackdown. Amnesty International says it has confirmed 52 fatalities, while Iran's Fars news agency has put the death toll at "around 60".

It is the bloodiest unrest in Iran since a ruthless crackdown on demonstrations in November 2019 over a sudden hike in fuel prices which killed at least 304 people, according to Amnesty.

Security forces used live ammunition and tear gas on Friday to try to disperse demonstrations in various cities and towns across the country.

Iran's intelligence ministry said "nine foreign nationals", including from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland, were arrested "at or behind the scene of riots", along with 256 members of outlawed opposition groups.

Unrest also erupted on Friday in Iran's southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan province, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said two of its colonels were killed, bringing the overall toll to 20 dead during the clashes in which three police stations were attacked.

- Outside forces -

"Several chain stores were looted and set on fire, and a number of banks and government centres were also damaged," said Sistan-Baluchestan governor Hossein Khiabani.

Poverty-stricken Sistan-Baluchestan is a flashpoint for clashes with drug smuggling gangs, as well as rebels from the Baluchi minority and Sunni Muslim extremist groups.

Iran has blamed outside forces for the nationwide protests.

On Wednesday, the Revolutionary Guards launched cross-border missile and drone strikes that killed 14 people in autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan, accusing rebel groups in the region of fuelling the unrest.

The US said one of its citizens was killed in the strikes.

Amnesty said Iran was intentionally using lethal force to crush the women-led protests.

It said it had obtained a leaked document issued to armed forces commanders in all provinces on September 21 ordering them to "severely confront" protesters.

Another leaked document showed the commander in Mazandaran province told forces to "confront mercilessly, going as far as causing deaths, any unrest by rioters and anti-revolutionaries".

Fifty-four countries signed a statement "urging Iran to stop using force against peaceful protesters", the US special envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, tweeted.

The warning comes as Iran presses ahead with an intensifying crackdown that has seen the arrest of many journalists, activists and other prominent figures.

burs/dv/jsa

 

 

[yota691]

'Crimes against humanity' .. an international court accuses the Iranian government of suppressing the 2019 demonstrations

2022.10.01 - 19:01

 

Baghdad - people  

A team of international lawyers accused the Iranian government of committing "crimes against humanity" as part of an investigation into the suppression of the demonstrations in the country in 2019.   

  

  

  

The Aban Court in London, which deals with the atrocities committed in November 2019, heard more than 250 witnesses in an investigation aimed at determining whether the Iranian regime violated international law by cracking down on demonstrations unprecedented since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which erupted in protest of price hikes. fuels.  

  

The authorities launched a violent crackdown to stop the protests, which led to the killing of at least 304 people, according to Amnesty International, which indicated that the police deliberately shot the demonstrators.  

  

The London-based court pointed out that the data collected by experts indicate that the number of dead may be much higher and may have reached one thousand and 515 dead.  

  

"The panel unanimously considers without a doubt that there is a possibility that the Iranian government and security forces have orchestrated and implemented a plan to commit crimes against humanity," the six legal experts on the court said in their conclusion.  

  

They assert that a number of members of the Iranian regime, from the Minister of Interior to the Basij militias, committed crimes in addition to arrests, enforced disappearances, torture and sexual violence to suppress demonstrators, and concealed their crimes.  

  

The court drew up a list of 161 people accused of crimes against humanity, especially Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, former President Hassan Rouhani, in addition to about 12 other high-ranking officials in the regime.  

  

Non-governmental organizations, including the London-based Justice for Iran and the Oslo-based Iranian Human Rights Organization, established the Aban Court, named after the Iranian month in which the events took place.  

  

It issued its report while Iran is witnessing demonstrations once again against the background of the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, days after she was arrested by the morality police for not complying with the very strict dress code in Iran, which specifically stipulates that women wear the veil.  

  

Source: AFP  

[yota691]

Hassan Nasrallah: Iran has no ambitions in Iraq's oil

2022.10.01 - 21:55

 

Baghdad - people   

The Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, attacked the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, saying that it cannot be viewed with "friendliness", while talking about the health of the Iranian leader, Ali Khamenei, and made television statements about the Iranian young woman, Mahsa Amini, whose death was born in a police detention center. Morality, the spark of recent protests in the country.  

  

  

Nasrallah asked, during a televised speech on Saturday, "How can normal people look with affection and love for Saudi Arabia, which sent 5,000 suicide bombers to Iraq, and then turn hostile to the Islamic Republic of Iran, which did everything to liberate Iraq."  

 

Nasrallah stated that "Iran has no ambitions in Iraq's oil, unlike other countries, including the United States," he said.  

 

Nasrallah commented on reports about the Iranian leader's health condition, saying that "it is not new...these are their wishes," and that Khamenei afterwards "sermons while standing and in good health as well, lies aimed at undermining people's resolve and confidence in their republic and system."  

  

Nasrallah commented on the ongoing protests in Iran, saying, "The world arose before an Iranian woman who died in mysterious circumstances," referring to Mahsa Amini, a young woman who was arrested by the morality police, which is concerned with applying Islamic rules in Iran, because of her appearance.  

  

Nasrallah said, "A mysterious incident was exploited and people camped... 1,000 or 2,000 lodged, and there was no problem. Some of them rioted, assaulted and killed."  

  

He continued: "Iran is strong... It is enough for fools and fools to watch the activities of the months of Muharram and Safar... It is enough to witness the historic funeral, which has no parallel since God created Adam, an amazing funeral, with a high degree of sadness for the martyred leader, Hajj Qassem Soleimani. This is the reality of Iran." And you are after a mirage."  

[yota691]

Iran's supreme leader breaks silence on protests, blames US

ASSOCIATED PRESS • October 3, 2022

---

In this picture released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, center, attends a graduation ceremony of a group of armed forces cadets accompanied by commanders of the armed forces, at the police academy in Tehran, Iran, Monday, Oct. 3, 2022. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/AP)

 

 

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei responded publicly on Monday to the biggest protests in Iran in years, breaking weeks of silence to condemn what he called "rioting" and accuse the U.S. and Israel of planning the protests.

Khamenei said he was "heartbroken" by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of Iran's morality police, which set off the nationwide protests. However, he sharply condemned the protests as a foreign plot to destabilize Iran, echoing authorities' previous comments.

"This rioting was planned," he told a cadre of police students in Tehran. "These riots and insecurities were designed by America and the Zionist regime, and their employees."

He described scenes of protestors ripping off their state-mandated headscarves and setting fire to mosques, banks and police cars as "not normal" and "unnatural."

His comments come as nationwide protests sparked by Amini's death entered a third week despite the government's efforts to crack down.

Iran's state TV has reported the death toll from violent clashes between protesters and the security officers could be as high as 41, without providing details. Rights groups have given higher death tallies, with London-based Amnesty International saying it has identified 52 victims, including five women and at least five children.

An untold number of people have been apprehended, with local officials reporting at least 1,500 arrests.

Authorities have repeatedly blamed foreign countries and exiled opposition groups for fanning the unrest, without providing evidence.

The protests over Amini's death have tapped into a deep well of grievances in Iran, including the country's surging prices, high unemployment, social restrictions and political repression. Demonstrations have continued in Tehran and far-flung provinces even as authorities have restricted internet access to the outside world and blocked social media apps.

As the new academic year began this week, students gathered in protest at universities across Iran, according to videos widely shared on social media, chanting slogans against the government and denouncing security forces' clampdown on demonstrators.

Universities in major cities including Isfahan in central Iran, Mashhad in the northeast and Kermanshah in the west have held protests featuring crowds of students clapping, chanting and burning state-mandated headscarves.

"Don't call it a protest, it's a revolution now," shouted students at Shahid Beheshti University in the capital of Tehran, as women took off their hijabs and set them alight, in protest over Iran's law requiring women to cover their hair.

"Students are awake, they hate the leadership!" chanted crowds of students at the University of Mazandaran in the country's north.

[yota691]

Swedish parliamentarian Abeer Al-Sahlani calls for suppor t for protests in Iran

2022.10.06 - 20:41

 

Baghdad - people  

Swedish MEP, Abeer Al-Sahlani, criticized the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, for his lack of courage in supporting protests in Iran against the Islamic regime.  

  

  

  

Al-Sahlani, who is of Iraqi origin, cut her hair on the evening of Tuesday 4 October while standing on the rostrum of the European Parliament during one of its sessions dedicated to supporting the struggle of Iranian women.  

  

"We, the peoples and citizens of the European Union, demand an immediate and unconditional end to all forms of violence against women and men in Iran," she said.  

  

"As long as Iran is not liberated, our anger will be greater than that of the oppressors," she added, according to a video clip uploaded to the European Parliament's website.  

  

Then she pulled out scissors and cut a few centimeters of her hair, saying, "Until you women of Iran are free, we will stand by you. Women, life, freedom!"  

  

Hair cutting has become one of the symbols of the ongoing uprising in Iran, sparked by the killing of Mahsa Amini, for violating the strict Islamic dress code that specifically obliges women to wear the hijab.  

  

Abeer Al-Sahlani attacked Josep Borrell, accusing him of lacking the courage not to "seize the opportunity before the United Nations General Assembly" to defend Iranian women. "Enough press releases now, enough stammering. It's time to speak out, it's time to act."  

[yota691]

The European Union: We are studying all options to confront Tehran after the killing of Mahsa Amini

2022.10.06 - 20:43

 

Baghdad - people   

In conjunction with the approval of the European Parliament’s resolution condemning the killing of Mahsa Amini and the regime’s suppression of protests in Iran, the European Union’s foreign policy coordinator, Josep Borrell, announced that the Union is studying all options to confront Tehran.  

  

  

The European Parliament approved a resolution condemning the killing of Mahsa Amini, and the suppression of protests that pervaded various parts of Iran .  

  

The resolution called on the Iranian regime to clarify the circumstances of the killing of Mahsa Amini, and to end violence and discrimination against women .  

  

It also condemned the European Parliament's decision to suppress the demonstrators, and cut off Internet access in Iran .  

  

In the draft text of the resolution, which was published earlier, EU member states were asked to work with the UN Human Rights Council to establish an international investigation and accountability mechanism with the aim of removing impunity for human rights violators in Iran .  

  

Also in this draft, EU member states are asked to add the perpetrators of Mahsa Amini's murder to the list of persons subject to restrictive measures in relation to serious human rights violations in Iran .  

  

On Tuesday, Josep Borrell announced that at the next meeting of the foreign ministers of the European Union member states, new sanctions will be considered against the Iranian regime for the "murder" of Mahsa Amini and the suppression of protests across the country .  

  

Referring to his phone conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian about the public protests in Iran, Borrell tweeted on Thursday: "The European Union is studying all options in this regard ."  

  

Borrell announced that in this call, he demanded clarification of the circumstances of Mahsa Amini's killing, an end to violence against demonstrators, the release of detainees, recognition of the right to protest and the free flow of information .

  

  

 

[yota691]

The Iranian authorities reveal the results of their investigation into the causes of the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini

2022.10.07 - 14:23

 

Baghdad - people  

Iranian forensic medicine announced that medical documents and autopsy proved that Mahsa Amini did not die as a result of an injury she received to the head or any part of her body .  

  

This came in a statement by the Iranian Forensic Medicine Authority, today, Friday .  

came in Statement Mahsa Amini underwent brain surgery at Milad Hospital in Tehran when she was eight years old .  

The statement added that after her operation, Amini suffered from abnormalities in the hypothalamus gland, so she was subjected to medication .  

He explained that " on September 13 last, at 07:56 pm , Amini lost consciousness , and due to her previous illness, she developed low blood pressure ."  

The statement indicated that " Amini suffered from a lack of oxygen and brain damage, despite performing artificial respiration for her in the first minutes ."  

He stated that " the effects caused by the lack of oxygen reaching the brain cells led to the death of Amini on September 16. "  

According to the medical documents and the autopsy, the statement confirmed that " Amini did not die as a result of an injury she received to the head or any part of her body ."  

For about two weeks, Iran has witnessed large protests after the death of the girl, Mahsa Amini, inside a police headquarters after she was arrested for allegedly " wearing the veil improperly ."  

The Iranian President He called Mahsa Amini's family following her death, during which he expressed his condolences, and ordered an investigation into this incident, pledging to follow up until the circumstances of the case were clarified .  

Protesters in Tehran and several Iranian cities set fire to police stations and vehicles over the past week, and chanted slogans against the authority, while the authorities confirmed the killing of at least 4 security forces during the dispersal of demonstrations .  

In a related context, the United States imposed, last week, sanctions on the " moral police " in Iran, accusing it of abusing women and using violence against them, and blaming it for the death of Mahsa Amini (22 years ).  

  

 

  

"Sputnik"  

[yota691]

Iranian Forensic Medicine Authority: Mahsa Amini's death was not due to injuries..and her father responds 

2022.10.07 - 21:10

 

Baghdad - people  

Mahsa Amini's father rejected the forensic report that "the cause of his daughter's death was not due to injuries to the head and parts of the body."  

  

  

  

Amini's father said in an interview with the Persian section of "Voice of America" (October 7, 2022), that he saw with his eyes traces of blood on the back of his daughter's neck and ear, and there were bruises on many parts of her body, including her legs.  

And the Iranian forensic medicine announced, earlier, that the medical documents and autopsy proved that Mahsa Amini did not die as a result of an injury she received to the head or any part of her body .  

  

This came in a statement by the Iranian Forensic Medicine Authority, today, Friday .  

  

The statement stated that Mahsa Amini underwent brain surgery at Milad  Hospital in Tehran when she was eight years old  .  

  

The statement added that after her operation, Amini suffered from abnormalities in the hypothalamus gland, so she was subjected to medication .  

  

He explained that  " on September  13  last, at 07:56  pm  , Amini lost consciousness ,  and due to her previous illness, she developed low blood pressure ."  

  

The statement indicated that  " Amini suffered from a lack of oxygen and brain damage, despite performing artificial respiration for her in the first minutes ."  

  

He stated that  " the effects caused by the lack of oxygen reaching the brain cells led to the death of Amini on September  16.  "  

  

According to the medical documents and the autopsy, the statement confirmed that  " Amini did not die as a result of an injury she received to the head or any part of her body ."  

  

For about two weeks, Iran has witnessed large protests after the death of the girl, Mahsa Amini, inside a police headquarters after she was arrested for allegedly  " wearing the veil improperly ."  

  

The Iranian president made a call to Mahsa Amini's family following her death, expressing his condolences, and ordered an investigation into this incident, pledging to follow up until the circumstances of the case were clarified .  

  

Protesters in Tehran and several Iranian cities set fire to police stations and vehicles over the past week, and chanted slogans against the authority, while the authorities confirmed the killing of at least  4  security forces during the dispersal of demonstrations .  

  

In a related context, the United States imposed, last week, sanctions on the  " moral police "  in Iran, accusing it of abusing women and using violence against them, and blaming it for the death of Mahsa Amini  (22  years ).  

  

 

  

"Sputnik"    

[yota691]

Canada imposes sanctions on 10,000 Iranian officials

2022.10.07 - 23:33

 

Baghdad - people  

On Friday, the Canadian authorities imposed sanctions against ten thousand Iranian officials, including members of the Revolutionary Guards, including banning them from entering its territory "for life."  

 

  

  

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that "a measure that was used only in the most dangerous circumstances against regimes that commit war crimes or genocide, as in Bosnia and Rwanda," and renewed his support for the Iranians who have been demonstrating for three weeks.  

  

Trudeau sharply criticized the Iranian regime, describing it as a barbaric, which commits murder and sows terror.  

  

Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland described the Iranian regime as "oppressive, theocratic and misogynistic."  

  

Tehran, which has witnessed protests since the announcement of the killing of Mahsa Amini, on the 16th of last month, accuses external forces of fueling the protests, especially the United States.  

  

At the end of September, Canada imposed sanctions on dozens of Iranian officials and entities, including the "morality police", who had detained Amini for "wearing the hijab in the wrong way." Other countries, most notably the United States, also imposed additional economic sanctions.  

  

Quoted from "Russia Today"  

[yota691]

Mahsa Amini and a message to viewers

Video: Iranian state TV broadcasts hacked during Khamenei's speech

2022.10.09 - 08:29

 

Baghdad - people   

Activists circulated on social media on the evening of Saturday, October 8, 2022, a video showing that Iranian state television was hacked via live broadcast.   

  

  

  

The video showed the replacement of a word by the Iranian General Guide, Ali Khamenei, with pictures of the girl who died during her arrest at the morality police station, and this caused protests that have been going on for several weeks.    

  

The seconds of the hack also included the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom", and a message to viewers, "Join us and rise up."   

  

 

 

 

Meanwhile, an internet monitoring service said on Saturday that Iran had cut off the internet in an attempt to curb a growing protest movement, amid reports of new killings.  

  

NetBlock said in a tweet: "Live network data shows that the internet has been cut off in Sindaj, in the Kurdistan region of Iran, amid reports of new killings during the protests over the killing of Mahsa Amini."  

 

Since the protests began last month, NetBlocks said it had recorded the most severe internet outages since 2019, when Iranian authorities also shut down the internet amid anti-government protests, as the international community struggled to track down the ensuing crackdown.  

  

Iranian security forces fired on protesters and used tear gas in the Kurdish cities of Sanandaj and Saqqaz in fresh protests at noon on Saturday, according to the Iranian human rights organization Hengao.  

  

In Sanandaj, security forces shot and killed a driver in his car, while two teachers at a school in Saqqaz were injured, Hengao said.  

  

Hengao said another protester was shot in the stomach by IRGC security forces and died.  

  

Students began in Sanandaj schools and led the protests. Then government forces began an attack on a school in Saqqaz, Hengau's Azin Chikhi told CNN on Saturday.  

  

Hengau said large-scale strikes are taking place in Saqqaz, Diwandarh, Mahabad and Sanandaj.  

  

Hengau Human Rights Organization, registered in Norway, monitors human rights violations in the Iranian Kurdish region, where protests began three weeks ago, following the death of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian Kurd, while in the custody of the morality police. Saqqaz is also her hometown.  

  

Quoted from "Araby Post"  

[yota691]

The TRUTH of Iran's protests is coming out and it's shocking | Redacted with Clayton Morris
244,802 views Oct 8, 2022

[yota691]

Britain imposes sanctions on Iran, affecting the "moral police" and security leaders

2022.10.10 - 18:10

 

Baghdad - people  

Britain announced, on Monday, the imposition of a list of sanctions that included the Iranian "moral police", and leaders from the police and the Basij.  

  

 

  

The British Foreign Office said in a statement, October 10, 2022, that it had imposed sanctions on the "morality police" and its leader, Mohammad Rostami Jashmeh Kaji, as well as the commander of the Tehran branch, Ahmad Mirzai.  

  

Britain also noted that the killing of Mahsa Amini in the morality police detention center and the subsequent protests raised astonishment around the world, and announced the imposition of sanctions on three other political and security officials in Iran "for grave violations of human rights."  

  

These three officials are: the commander of the Basij Organization of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Gholamreza Soleimani, the commander of the special unit in the police, Hassan Karami, and the Iranian police chief, Hossein Ashtari.  

  

In a statement published by Britain, it was emphasized that "the Basij Organization, the Special Unit and the Iranian police at a broader level played a major role in suppressing the public protests that have been raging for weeks, as well as protests related to the fuel price hike in 2019".  

  

This statement referred to reports of the use of live bullets against protesters in Iran, and wrote: "Students were surrounded by security men at Sharif University, and there are other reports of the burial of the bodies of the dead protesters by the security services without the knowledge of their families."  

  

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said: "Britain stands with the Iranian people who are courageously demanding that the regime be held accountable and that basic human rights are respected."  

  

He added, "These sanctions send a clear message to the Iranian authorities: We hold you responsible for the oppression of women and girls and the horrific violence you are inflicting on your people."  

  

Under these sanctions, sanctioned individuals cannot travel to the UK and their assets in the UK, or held by UK individuals anywhere, will be frozen.  

  

Britain had earlier condemned the violent suppression of the protests by the Iranian authorities by summoning the Iranian ambassador in London.  

  

Sanctions have also been imposed on the "moral police" and some other military and security leaders by the United States and Canada.  

  

Quoted from "Iran International"  

[yota691]

Iran reveals the death toll of its security forces during the protests

internationals

2022-10-11 | 04:19

 

 

2,958 views

Alsumaria News - International

Iranian media reports revealed, on Tuesday, a preliminary toll of the deaths and injuries of security personnel with the fourth week of anti-regime protests.

And the Iranian government news agency "IRNA" said that "24 members of the Basij forces and the police were killed in the recent protests."

Among those described by the Iranian Islamic Republic News Agency as "martyrs of the security protection", the names of two senior officers can be seen, Colonel Hamid Reza Hashemi, deputy intelligence officer of the Salman Sistan and Baluchestan Corps, and Lt. Col. Daoud Abdullah, commander of a special unit of a police force in Marivan, in the west of the country ".

 

According to Major General Qassem Rezaei, deputy commander of the Iranian police forces, "about two thousand policemen" were injured in the recent protests.

This statistic is being announced, while the official statistics of the demonstrators who were killed, injured and arrested in the recent protests have not yet been announced.

The Iranian Human Rights Organization, based in Oslo, announced the number of protesters who had been killed as of Saturday, with at least 185 people, about half of them in Sistan and Baluchestan.

 

The International Federation for Human Rights and the Association for the Defense of Human Rights in Iran, based in Paris, announced the latest death toll, as of Saturday, at 193 people.

At a time when protests continued in Iran, human rights organizations called for an international investigation into the Mahsa Amini case and the suppression of the protests, as the largest international trade union federations in the world condemned the government's violence.

International concern about Sanandaj
In a related context, Amnesty International expressed its concern about the repression of demonstrators in Sanandaj, the capital of Kurdistan province in western Iran, by posting a message on Twitter.

"We are concerned about the suppression of protests in Sanandaj, Kurdistan Region, in light of published reports about the use of firearms and the firing of tear gas even at people's homes," Amnesty International wrote on its Twitter account.

The organization, which monitors the human rights situation, called for global support and wrote: "The authorities of the Islamic Republic continue to cut off the Internet and mobile phone networks to hide their crimes from the countries of the world, and immediately raise the level of their protest with the Iranian ambassadors and demand an immediate end to the suppression of protests and respect for the right to freedom of peaceful assembly."

Reports published on social media indicate that security forces continued to violently deal with protesters in Sanandaj on Monday evening.

In a related context, the "Hengaw" website, which tracks human rights news in Kurdistan, reported clashes and shelling in Sanandaj.

The organization said: "Sanandaj is under a large-scale military attack, with the Internet being cut off."

Sanandaj has witnessed massive protests in recent days, especially on Monday evening, which led to clashes between demonstrators and security forces.

[yota691]

A newspaper predicts the fate of the Iranian protests, three weeks after their outbreak

2022.10.11 - 17:23

 

Baghdad - people  

The newspaper "Arman Emroz" indicated that the protests had continued for more than three weeks in Iran, and said that many were expecting the protests to recede days after their outbreak, but these protests have continued since the moment the death of Mahsa Amini was announced, and asked: "When will these protests end? ".  

  

And social researcher Ibrahim Fayyad said in response to the newspaper’s question about the time of the end of these protests, and according to what “Nass” followed (October 11, 2022), “the social uprisings will not end, it is not an issue of raising the price of a commodity in order to stop when these are resolved.” The problem is, with regard to these protests, we must know that they will not end and we may witness a change in their form, and it is wrong to think that they will end,” adding: “Instead of this thinking, we must think of ways to meet people’s demands and make them fulfilled through legal and constitutional channels.”  

Fayyad continued, "The regime must search for practical solutions to win the approval of the street. Dealing with an unrealistic view of the popular uprising will not solve the problem. Rather, it contributes to doubling the despair of reforming the situation and increases the rift between the people and the ruling authority."  

On the other hand, the newspaper, "Kayhan", which is close to the guide, pointed to "the wide participation of young people and adolescents in the protests taking place in Iran," and blamed this on "women who work outside the home, as well as follow satellite channels - according to her opinion - as she attributed the reason for This means that children follow the virtual world and social media.”  

  

 

[yota691]

Abdullahian: Iran is not the land of velvet or colored coups

10-16-2022 | 16:50 Source : AFP

 

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian

 

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian urged the European Union, which intends to impose sanctions on Tehran, to adopt a "realistic" approach to the protests that followed the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, stressing that the Islamic Republic is not "a land of velvet or colored coups."

Since September 16, the Islamic Republic has witnessed protests following the death of Amini, 22, three days after she was arrested by the morality police for not adhering to strict dress codes.

Dozens, including members of the security forces, died on the sidelines of the protests, of which women are an essential part. The authorities announced the arrest of hundreds of protesters for their involvement in "riots".

During Friday's call with Josep Borrell, Amir Abdollahian said, "The death of the late Mahsa Amini was a source of regret for all of us... Of course, we are looking forward to a greater framework for cooperation between the European Union and the Islamic Republic of Iran," according to a statement by the Iranian Foreign Ministry on Saturday.

He continued, "Therefore, we advise the Europeans to look at the issue from a realistic perspective," stressing that "Iran is not the land of velvet or colored coups."

For his part, Borrell wrote on Twitter Friday that he conveyed to Amir Abdollahian the "clear and united position of the European Union: people in Iran have the right to demonstrate peacefully and defend basic rights."

"The violent repression must stop immediately. The protesters must be released," he added.

Iranian officials have previously criticized Western countries' "hypocrisy" in the issue of human rights and their "interference."

In a separate statement on Friday, Amir Abdullahian asked, during his meeting with participants in the Islamic Unity Conference, "Who can believe that the death of a girl is so important to Westerners?"

"If this is the case, then what have they done about the hundreds of thousands of martyrs and dead in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and Lebanon?"

Western countries have criticized the authorities' handling of the protests, and some, such as the United States and Canada, have imposed sanctions on Iranian officials for their role in "suppressing" the movements.

The European Union also agreed to impose sanctions on Iranian officials for the same reason, according to diplomatic sources, with the move becoming official after it was approved by foreign ministers during a meeting on Monday.

In a separate call with his Portuguese counterpart, Joao Gomes Cravinho, Amir Abdollahian reiterated the warning against reciprocating any European sanctions on Tehran.

"In their intrusive statements, some countries ... put the issue of issuing a decision or imposing sanctions on the agenda of the next meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the European Union," he said, adding, "If such a step is taken, the Islamic Republic of Iran will take a corresponding step.

[yota691]

Khomeini's grandson breaks silence on protests in Iran

2023.02.24 - 12:40

 

Baghdad - Nas  

Hassan Khomeini, the grandson of Ruhollah Khomeini, commenting on the protests in Iran, said: If we engage in a war, the country will go back 100 years.  

  

  

  

Khomeini's grandson said, according to statements reported by "VOA" radio station and followed by "NAS" (February 24, 2023), about the current situation in Iran, "If we do not negotiate, the situation will turn into fighting, and it is not as if one side wins."  

  

In the past five months, despite widespread protests, Hassan Khomeini, like most reformists, has remained silent.  

  

Protests began in the country last September after the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, at the hands of the morality police.  

  

The protests have resulted in the killing of more than 500 protesters since September, including 71 minors, while nearly 20,000 people have been arrested. According to human rights activists, at least four people were hanged, according to the judiciary.  

[Bama Girl]

Barbarians!
 

[JonnyV]

An Arab Spring will occur and cause chaos there…..hopefully.