Details of ‘Terrifying’ Security Forces Raid on Sharif University

In continuation of the crackdown on nationwide protests in Iran, on Sunday evening, October 10, security forces along with a large number of plainclothes operatives surrounded Tehran’s Sharif University of Technology and attacked students, beating and shooting them, injuring an unknown number of students and detaining others, transferring them to unknown locations.

The Islamic Association of Sharif University published a report on Monday morning detailing the ‘terrifying’ raid by security forces on the university on its Twitter account and described the details of this incident.

According to this report, protesting students in the university courtyard encountered plainclothes forces when they reached the entrance of the Energy Engineering School, who were prepared with several vans to detain them.

In the initial confrontation, security officials “arrested three students and sent a fourth student to hospital with a baton blow to the head,” marking the beginning of a widespread assault that continued with firing of pellet and paintball ammunition.

The Islamic Association of Sharif University of Technology reported that following the raid by security and plainclothes forces, students fleeing encountered locked university gates and found themselves surrounded by security forces.

As a result of this situation, students headed to the university parking lot to escape the confrontation, but it was reported that the parking lot entrance door would not open either.

According to the report from Sharif University’s Islamic Association, plainclothes forces were lying in wait for students on the first and second floors of the parking lot with batons, weapons, and motorcycles, and by firing plastic and pellet bullets from close range, particularly targeting girls, they prevented them from moving and detained the students.

Meanwhile, another group of students trapped in the parking lot were wounded as a result of pellet and plastic bullet fire. However, despite tear gas being fired, a number of students managed to “enter a Family Mart hypermarket through an elevator and escape.”

The Islamic Association of Sharif University students wrote that by this point, at least 30 to 40 Sharif University students had been detained, with no information available about most of their conditions.

This came after videos had circulated in recent days showing threats from some members of the Basij student organization against protesting students, promising to crack down on demonstrations.

Continuing the report of last night’s events, it stated that students trapped in the parking lot were forced to return to the university courtyard, but again “security forces, holding rifles, watch the students and selectively pull a number of students from the crowd and take them away.”

As reported by the Islamic Association of Sharif University students, plainclothes forces in some cases responded with beatings to attempts by security personnel or some university professors to mediate and prevent the detention of students.

Amidst these events, the spread of some videos of the raid on Sharif University on social networks created a wave of concern among student families and general users, especially since it was reported that many of the students who were attacked were “class of 1401 freshmen who were experiencing their second day at the university.”

Following this reporting, it was said that some people drove to Sharif University to help the students, which resulted in heavy traffic on the main streets around the university, and groups of people also went to the university’s closed gates demanding the release of students.

Meanwhile, a video was released showing the presence of Mohammad Ali Zolfigol, the Minister of Science of Ibrahim Raisi’s government, at Sharif University, which showed that in response to protesting students, he accused them of wasting public funds and said “if you don’t obey the law, you must pay the price.”

Zolfigol also demanded that students refrain from taking photos and videos for foreign media outlets in response to students’ complaints and protests about being beaten and wounded by plainclothes and security forces, because “it is not befitting of a Sharif University student.”

Following last night’s raid on Sharif University by officials, and while reports indicated the atmosphere remained tense, Rasool Jalili, president of Sharif University, claimed “students are well and the gathering has ended.”

Jalili also advised student families to, as he put it, “not be influenced by the foreign media’s propaganda factory.”

In some reports, Rasool Jalili is mentioned as one of the “architects of the internet filtering project in Iran in the 1980s and one of the main drivers of filtering and the protection plan in recent years.”

Based on video reports from Tehran, the Sharif University area, particularly the intersection of Yad Imam Expressway and Azadi Street, was still facing heavy traffic and tense security conditions until some time after midnight.

No official report has yet been released regarding the number of detained students and their fate, the number of injured, or the official identity of the forces that attacked Sharif University on Sunday evening, October 10.

This while, based on some reports, including announcements from Iran’s student unions, a number of students at this university have also been detained by security forces in dormitories.

This organization wrote on its Telegram channel: “According to news received at 9 p.m. tonight, October 10, several students present in Sharif Dormitory No. 2 were detained by security forces, loaded into a van and transferred to an unknown location.”

Sharif University of Technology’s website also announced in a statement: “All classes at this university will be held virtually until further notice.”

The nationwide “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests against the Iranian government began on September 16 when it was announced that Mahsa Amini died in police custody under the “morality police,” and after more than two weeks have continued in many Iranian cities.

Source: Radio Farda