DUBAI, Oct 30 (Reuters) – Protests in Iran entered a more violent phase on Sunday, as students ignored Revolutionary Guard ultimatums and warnings from the president, were tear-gassed and shot by security forces, socialized Media video display.
The death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after being arrested by morality police for improperly dressed sparked a seventh week of demonstrations as clashes at dozens of universities sparked threats of a tougher crackdown.
“Security is the red line of the Islamic Republic, and we will not allow the enemy to carry out in any way his plans to destroy this precious national asset,” hardline President Ibrahim Raisi said, according to state media.
Since Amini’s death, Iranians from all walks of life have taken to the streets in protests that clerics say endanger the security of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Authorities have accused Islamist Iran’s main enemies, the United States and Israel, and their local proxies, of being behind the unrest that has destabilized the country.
What started as outrage over Amini’s death in September. The 16th has turned into one of the toughest challenges to civilian rulers since the 1979 revolution, with some protesters calling for the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The top commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards told protesters that Saturday would be their last day on the streets, in the harshest warning yet from Iranian authorities.
Still, social media footage, which Reuters could not verify, showed students clashing with riot police and Basky forces at universities across Iran on Sunday.
A video shows a member of the Basky Forces firing at students protesting at the Azad University campus in Tehran at close range. Gunfire was also heard in a video shared by rights group HENGAW during the protest at Sanandaj Kurdistan University.
Video from universities in some other cities also showed Basky troops firing on students.
Across the country, security forces tried to prevent students from entering university buildings, firing tear gas and beating protesters with sticks. The seemingly unarmed students pushed back, with some chanting “Shame Basgy lost” and “Death to Khamenei”.
history of repression
Social media reports say at least a dozen doctors, journalists and artists have been arrested since Saturday. The activist HRANA news agency said 283 protesters, including 44 minors, had been killed in the unrest as of Saturday. Some 34 members of the security forces were also killed.
It said more than 14,000 people, including 253 students, were arrested during protests in 132 towns and 122 universities.
The Guard and its affiliated Baski units have cracked down on dissent in the past. “Agitators” insulted them at universities and on the streets, they said on Sunday, and warned they could use more force if anti-government unrest continues.
“So far, the Baskis have shown restraint and they have been patient,” state news agency IRNA quoted Brigadier General Mohammad Dereza Mahdawi, head of the Revolutionary Guard in Khorasan province, as saying.
“But if the situation continues, it will be out of our control.”
reporters call
More than 300 Iranian journalists demanded the release of two colleagues jailed for reporting on Amini in a statement issued Sunday by Iran’s Etemad and other newspapers.
Niloofar Hamedi photographed Amini’s parents hugging each other at a hospital in Tehran when their daughter was in a coma.
The photo, which Khamedi tweeted, was the first signal to the world that things were not good for Amini, who was detained by Iran’s morality police three days ago for being improperly dressed.
Elaheh Mohammadi reported on Amini’s funeral in her Kurdish hometown of Saqez, where the protests began. A joint statement released Friday by Iran’s intelligence ministry and Revolutionary Guards intelligence group accused Khamedi and Mohammed of being foreign agents of the CIA.
Students and women played a major role in the unrest, burning their veils as crowds called for the overthrow of the Islamic Republic, which came to power in 1979.
An official said Sunday that the agency has no plans to withdraw from forced auctions, but should be “sensible” when it comes to enforcement.
“It is against our law to lift the veil, and this headquarters will not retreat from its place,” Ali Khan Mohammadi, spokesman for Iran’s headquarters for the promotion of virtue and the prevention of evil, told the Khabaronline website.
“However, we should act wisely and avoid giving the enemy an excuse to turn against us.”
To further de-escalate the situation, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bakr Kalibaf said people were right to call for reforms and their demands would be met if they distanced themselves from the “criminals” who took to the streets.
“We believe that protests are not only right and progressive, but we also believe that these social movements will change policies and decisions, provided they are separated from violent, criminal and separatist elements,” he said. Usually used for protests By.
Writing by Michael Georgy and Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Nick Macfie, Philippa Fletcher, Angus MacSwan and Barbara Lewis
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