Intense clashes between protesters and riot police in Tehran; protests continue in several other Iranian cities
Reports and videos received indicate that group demonstrations by protesters in Tehran have begun in response to the death of Mahsa Amini, who died while in custody during an arrest by the Guidance Patrol (morality police), and riot control forces have taken to the streets to suppress the protesters.
Based on one of these videos, intense clashes between riot control forces and protesters are ongoing at Vali-Asr Square in Tehran, during which protesters throw stones at a water cannon vehicle.
In other videos, protesters on Keshavarz Boulevard chant slogans including “Death to the dictator,” “Iranian, enough now / show your honor,” “We fight, we die / we reclaim Iran,” “Bombs, tanks, bullets / the clerics must disappear,” and “This is the final message / the target is the regime.”
A gathering was also held on Hejab Street where protesters chanted “Woman, Life, Freedom.”
Images received from this march as well as protest gatherings at Tehran, Beheshti, and Allameh universities indicate that a group of women have removed their headscarves and waved them in the air as a sign of opposition to mandatory hijab.
Near Vali-Asr Square, protesters also chanted “Death to the dictator,” “Death to the Islamic Republic,” “I will kill, I will kill / whoever killed my sister,” “Our shame, our shame / our leader is shameful,” and “The eye and light of Iran / Kurdistan, Kurdistan.”
A group of women present at this gathering had also removed their headscarves.
In another video, a motorcycle is seen on fire, which is said to have belonged to one of the plainclothes officers, although Radio Farda cannot confirm the accuracy of this video.
In other videos, police officers are seen attacking protesters with batons and motorcycles, attempting to disperse them. Protesters at Vali-Asr Square attempted to overturn police vehicles.
These protests are in response to calls made on Sunday by various civil groups.
No reports have yet been published regarding the number of people arrested or injured in today’s Tehran protests.
Images and videos received also show that protesters took to the streets in the cities of Mashhad, Rasht, Paveh, Kamyaran, Boukan, Isfahan, Karaj, and Takab, chanting slogans against the Islamic Republic authorities and in protest of Mahsa Amini’s death.
Protesters in Gohardasht, Karaj chanted: “Fight until we fight / we are all Mahsa.”
Meanwhile, the human rights website “Hengaw” reported that “in Boukan, a 10-year-old girl was shot in the head and seriously wounded. The condition of this girl has been reported as critical.”
On the other hand, the website “NetBlocks” reported on its Twitter page that internet connectivity in the city of Sanandaj, the capital of Kurdistan Province, has been almost completely cut off since four o’clock in the afternoon on Monday.
This website attributed the internet shutdown in Sanandaj to the spread of protests over Mahsa Amini’s death at the time of her arrest by the Guidance Patrol.
Shooting at protesters in Divandareh
Reports from Divandareh in Kurdistan Province indicate that during protests in the city over the death of Mahsa (Jina) Amini, a 22-year-old who died in the custody of the Guidance Patrol, security forces fired at protesters, resulting in several people being wounded.
Videos received show that widespread protests have been ongoing in this city since Monday morning.
Reports indicate that the physical condition of one of the wounded in Divandareh named “Fouad Qadimi” was critical, and he was transferred to Sanandaj for treatment. Civil Protest Bazaar activists reported the number of wounded as eight, while the Hengaw human rights news website reported the number as 10 people.
He said that “after Jina Amini’s funeral, the atmosphere in Saghez was completely security-focused and the city was on complete strike that day. Yesterday it was partially closed and the presence of security forces was very heavy, and according to a general call, today people did not go to shops and the strike was held completely.”
Simultaneously with protest gatherings in Kurdish areas, some published videos show riot control forces being deployed to cities where clashes have been more intense in recent days, including Ashnouyeh, Boukan, Piranshahr, and Mahabad.
University protests
Following protests over Mahsa Amini’s death, a group of students at Amirkabir University in Tehran gathered on Monday in the university courtyard and chanted slogans against the Islamic Republic authorities, but their gathering turned violent with the intervention of Basij forces and university security.
Videos received show that students at this university chanted slogans including “I will kill, I will kill / whoever killed my sister” and “Basiji, get lost.”
Amirkabir University (Polytechnic) students also issued a statement saying: “The systematic and savage murder of Mahsa Amini by Guidance Patrol officers is a symbol of 44 years of suppression and brutality to which the current order has tied its own existence and survival, imposing an atmosphere of suffocation on society.”
News also comes from University of Tehran that a large group of protesters chanted “Death to the dictator” on Monday in protest. On this day, protest gatherings were held at Tehran University of Art, Tarbiat Modares University, Tabatabai University, and Isfahan University.
At University of Tehran, protesters also chanted “Streets flooded with blood, our teachers are murderers.”
Beyond University of Tehran and Amirkabir, TASNIM news agency reported student gatherings at Beheshti and Modares universities in Tehran, and based on videos published on social networks, students at Allameh University have also joined the ranks of protesters.
Shop strikes and arrests
According to reports, the scope of strikes and protest gatherings of recent days over Mahsa (Jina) Amini’s death expanded on Monday and covered more cities.
News comes from cities of Saghez, Sanandaj, Baneh, Kamyaran, and Marivan in Kurdistan Province and cities of Urmia, Mahabad, Boukan, Sardasht, and Ashnouyeh in West Azerbaijan Province, Kermanshah and Jovanrood in Kermanshah Province, and Mohammadshahr in Alborz Province that many merchants in these cities have gone on strike and closed their shops.
This is while according to received information, security forces in their night calls had threatened merchants and shopkeepers in Marivan and Saghez that if they do not open their shops as usual on Monday, their businesses will be sealed.
The Kurdistan Human Rights Network, KurdPA, also reports that on Sunday a citizen named “Shahoo Iqbal” was arrested by security forces following his participation in protest gatherings over Mahsa (Jina) Amini’s death on Sixth Bahman Street in Sanandaj and transferred to an undisclosed location.
This report also states that Lotfollah Ahmadi, a civil activist and member of the “Chelsme” hiking group, was arrested on Sunday evening in Sanandaj, and his family has no information about his whereabouts.
It has also been reported that Franck Rafiee, an environmental activist from Sanandaj, was arrested during a gathering held yesterday at Azadi (Iqbal) Square in Sanandaj in protest of Mahsa Amini’s death.
Reports also indicate a security atmosphere prevailing in Kermanshah and widespread presence of special units across the city. According to Hengaw’s report, most shopkeepers in Kermanshah have been threatened by security institutions not to participate in the general strike on Monday.
Meanwhile, mobile internet in the cities of Baneh, Marivan, Sanandaj, and many cities in northwest Iran has been disrupted or completely cut off.
On the other hand, it is reported that Behzad Rahimi, representative of Saghez and Baneh in parliament, intended to speak at a funeral ceremony for Mahsa Amini but was opposed by those present and not allowed.
Protesters over Mahsa Amini’s death have also issued calls for Monday gatherings and protests in Isfahan and Tabriz.
According to reports, protest programs for Monday are also scheduled to be held at Sharif University of Technology in Tehran.
Mahsa Amini, who had traveled to Tehran with her family from Saghez, died at Kasrai Tehran Hospital on the 25th of Shahrivar, three days after her arrest by Guidance Patrol officers, and her body was buried in Saghez on Saturday amid public protests.
According to the statement of Kasrai Tehran Hospital, when this 22-year-old was transferred to the hospital, no vital signs were detected in her.
Source: Radio Farda
