More than 70 dead in Iran as anti-government protests continue in major cities

Middle East, News September 28, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

More than 70 people have been reported dead while hundreds arrested in Iran due to the ongoing wave of unrest. It all started in the form of anti-government protests sparked by the death of a woman in police custody.

Iranian riot police and security forces have been tackling protests simultaneously in dozens of cities all across the country. The unrest started over the death of Mahsa Amini who died in police custody. The 22-year-old was arrested in the northwestern Kurdish city of Saqez on September 13, by the ‘Morality Police’ for violating the dress code. She died in a hospital three days later after falling into a coma. The police said that Amini died after suffering from sudden heart failure, but her family dismissed the claims and alleged that her coma was a result of induced torture.

Iranian state media reported that 41 people have died during the course of violent protests. However, the number differs from different sources. According to a Norway-based organization, Iran Human Rights (IHR), at least 76 people have been killed while hundreds were arrested including several journalists.

Videos posted on social media show protesters chanting for the fall of the clerical-led Iranian regime. Violent clashes between protesters and security forces have been reported in more than 80 cities in Iran including the major cities of Tehran, Tabriz, Karaj, Qom, and Yazd.

The government has restricted internet coverage and closed down many social media platforms, including WhatsApp and Instagram, throughout the country.

^{People light a fire during a protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, a woman who died after being arrested by the Islamic republic’s “morality police”, in Tehran, Iran on September 21, 2022. (Image Credit: WANA/via Reuters)}

International reactions

The United Nations Human Rights office issues a statement regarding the protests in unrest in Iran. A spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Ravina Shamdasani urged the Iranian administration to “fully respect the rights to freedom of opinion, expression, peaceful assembly and association”.

Human rights group Amnesty International said in its statement that Iran’s security forces have responded to the protests with “unlawful force, including by using live ammunition, birdshot, and other metal pellets, killing dozens of people and injuring hundreds of others”.

Amnesty asked the Iranian authorities “to urgently repeal laws that impose compulsory veiling on women and girls, perpetuate violence against them and strip them of their right to dignity and bodily autonomy, and abolish the “morality” police which enforces these abusive and discriminatory laws”.

U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists demanded an immediate release of 20 reporters and bloggers who had been detained by the Iranian Security Forces. “Iranian security forces must drop their repressive measures against the journalists telling this critical story and restore the internet access that is vital to keep the public informed,” the CPJ said.

In his speech during the United Nations General Assembly last week, President Biden criticized the government of Iran for its human rights records without mentioning the ongoing protests. Several U.S. lawmakers have come forward to support the protests in Iran and condemned President Biden for his lack of support toward the Iranian protesters. Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn showed her support for Iranian women, tweeting: “I stand with the brave women of Iran fighting back against their oppressive government.”

Spain summoned the Iranian ambassador on September 29, to express its opposition to the crackdown on protests in Iran. Spanish foreign ministry released a statement saying that “Spain reiterates its firm commitment to human rights defenders, and particularly to the rights of women, who must be respected in any circumstance and in accordance with universal international instruments in force. In particular, the government reiterates its strong condemnation and repulsion at the violence perpetrated against Iranian women and their rights.”