Metropol Collapse; Continued Public Protests in Shadegan

In other videos published on the internet, the Andimeshk-Ahvaz road is shown, where protesters have blocked this busy route by setting tires on fire.

Entry of Special Force Vehicles into Abadan

In another video, dozens of anti-riot special force vehicles are shown entering Abadan. The person who recorded this footage said “We need forces for debris removal, but they sent bullet-proof vehicles.”

Dariush Moammar, a journalist, wrote in a tweet that “Security forces tried to find an excuse for suppression by linking people’s protests to separatism. The people of Abadan, Khorramshahr, Arab, Persian, Kurd, Lur, and Bakhtiari have already proven their loyalty in defending every inch of this land.”

As the death toll from the Metropol tower collapse increases, protests continue in recent days while efforts to extract bodies from under the rubble are still underway, discussions about those responsible and the causes of the building’s collapse are also ongoing.

Saeed Hafezi, a journalist covering Khuzestan, wrote on Twitter: “Hamid Maranipur, the prosecutor of Abadan, said, ‘No one formally reported Metropol’s problems so that I could intervene!'”

Sadegh Khalilian, the governor of Khuzestan, said on Tuesday, June 10, at a gathering with reporters: “Some officials of Khuzestan province who played a role in the ‘Abdolbaghian building construction’ file between 2016 and the first half of 2021 and even attended the building’s inauguration have been investigated.”

According to the governor of Khuzestan, to prevent another disaster, all other buildings constructed by ‘Abdolbaghian Holding’ in Khuzestan province will be inspected.

Among the names that, according to domestic media reports, will be investigated regarding the Metropol disaster, former Khuzestan governor Ali Shariati’s name is also mentioned. Shariati’s wife responded to accusations made against her husband regarding the Metropol inauguration in an Instagram message.

Maryam Mohebbian, in this message while expressing sympathy with the people of Abadan, wrote: “The order to stop work was issued in the new government and has nothing to do with the previous government.” The former governor’s wife emphasizes, “Neither obtaining a permit nor technical supervision of it has any connection to the governorate and is solely the specialized work of the municipality and the engineering system.”

On Monday, May 23, 2022, part of the second tower of the Metropol building in downtown Abadan collapsed. According to Ehsan Abaspour, the administrator of Abadan, the identities of 37 victims of the Metropol incident have been confirmed so far. The number of people still buried under the rubble has not yet been announced.