Mass arrests and threats from security agencies on the fourth day of protests
The Revolutionary Guards issued a statement threatening the protesters with a “decisive response.” Security and law enforcement agencies are also reporting widespread arrests in various provinces. The exact number of deaths has not yet been announced on the fourth day of protests.
In a statement, the Revolutionary Guards called the protesters “rioters” and “vengeful,” and claimed that in most provinces and cities, the people have been “guarantors of stability and peace in society,” “so much so that not a single report of insecurity, destruction, looting, or plundering of public property has been received from those areas.”
On the other hand, the governor of Tehran admitted that protests have occurred in more than 70 percent of Iran's provinces.
The Public Relations Office of the Imam Hassan Mojtaba IRGC announced that 150 people have been arrested in Alborz Province during the protests over the past two days.
The arrest of a number of Tehran students has also been confirmed by university officials, but it is still unclear which security agency is responsible for the arrests. In Khuzestan province, news also emerged of the arrest of protest “leaders.”
Hassan Rouhani also threatened those who create traffic jams with their cars, saying that vehicles and their license plates would be identified through the many cameras installed in cities.
Despite opposition, the Iranian government continues to prevent citizens from accessing internet communications.
A look at scattered reports shows that dozens of people have been killed so far and more than a thousand have been arrested.
Iranian Ambassador to London: Gasoline price hike shows strong bond between government and people
Hamid Baeidinejad, the Islamic Republic’s ambassador to London, claimed that the increase in gasoline prices under sanctions “indicates a strong bond between the government and the people.” According to Baeidinejad, this issue is ignored in Western countries.
But Baeidinejad did not mention the widespread protests taking place in more than 100 cities in Iran, where officials say several people have been killed and more than a thousand arrested.
150 people arrested by the IRGC in Alborz province
IRGC Public Relations Officer Imam Hassan Mojtaba announced that 150 people have been arrested in the protests over the past two days. The IRGC has claimed that these individuals were the “leaders” of the protests. The IRGC forces have identified these individuals. The IRGC statement states that these “individuals were trained inside and outside the country and, in exchange for money, set fire to and destroyed centers.”
In some videos posted on social media, police forces are seen firing at protesters. An unclear number of people have been killed and injured in the protests in recent days. According to official sources, more than a thousand people have been arrested so far.
Isfahan Mayor: The unrest caused damages between 200 and 300 billion tomans
Qodratollah Norouzi, the mayor of Isfahan, claimed that the recent unrest has caused significant damage of around 200 to 300 billion tomans to Isfahan's "infrastructure, roads, and urban facilities."
According to Norouzi, "due to the sanctions, replacing and repairing much of the damage" to Isfahan is very difficult, and in some cases even impossible.
The protests in Isfahan have caused the metro and city train to stop. According to Norouzi, about 300 buses have also been “completely burned.” Norouzi added, referring to the fact that 100,000 people travel by metro per day, “but now the metro has been closed due to the destruction. Also, buses that used to transport 600,000 people every day are now damaged.”
This is while social media is reporting violent clashes between security and law enforcement officers and protesters. The exact number of those killed and injured is not yet clear. Some eyewitnesses report that officers are destroying vehicles and public property.
A user's news about the situation in Shiraz
Mohammad, a citizen of Shirazi, sent a message to Deutsche Welle about the situation in his neighborhood:
"Hello, I'm sending a message from Shiraz. I don't know how I was able to connect."
The situation in the city is quite safe. Due to the rain, people were not in the city very much today. Most shops are closed.
Security forces were present in all the areas where there was fighting yesterday and last night.
In several neighborhoods, such as Golestan Town and Bezan Town, people clashed with plainclothes forces.
Gas stations are closed, the few that are open have long lines and police and security forces are present.
"On all the streets where there were protests, all the banks and municipal government facilities were damaged, you could say eighty percent were destroyed."
A number of Tehran University students were arrested.
On Sunday, November 16, students at the University of Tehran held a rally outside the university campus to protest the country's economic situation and the events of the past few days. At the end of the rally, a number of students were arrested outside the university campus.
Shafaqna News Agency quoted Saeed Habiba, vice president of student affairs at Tehran University, as confirming the arrest of the students. According to Habiba, security and university officials are investigating the situation of the detained students. It is not yet clear which security agency arrested the students.
MP: Internet shutdown has caused more dissatisfaction in society
Hamideh Zarabadi, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, called for the lifting of restrictions on internet access. According to Zarabadi, disruptions in the global internet network have created “new dissatisfaction” among citizens. Zarabadi emphasized: “There are even internet outages in areas where there are no problems.”
Security officials have slowed or completely cut off internet connections in Iran to contain unrest. According to Zarabadi, the internet shutdown has hampered news reporting and added to “inflammation” in society. The internet shutdown has also disrupted business in Iran.
Demanding respect for people's right to protest
Ulrike Demmer, deputy spokesperson for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, called on Iran to respect the “legitimate right of the Iranian people to protest against the increase in gasoline prices” at a press conference in Berlin on Monday, November 18.
"This is a legitimate step and should be respected when people courageously express their economic and political dissatisfaction, which is what we are witnessing now in Iran," he stressed.
The German Chancellor's deputy spokesman added that the Iranian government should respond to the current protests by declaring its readiness to talk to the protesters.
On the other hand, the spokesman for the French Foreign Minister also stated that the country is closely following developments and events in Iran.
In this regard, he also emphasized that freedom of expression and peaceful protests are rights that must be respected.
In parallel with the German government's stance on the unrest in Iran, Bijan Jirsaei, foreign policy spokesman for the German Free Democratic Party (FDP), posted a message on Twitter: "Whether it's Hong Kong or Tehran. The German government either doesn't take a position or hides behind diplomatic words. It's truly sad."
Statement from the Kazerun Seminary regarding the burning of this place
The Fararou website reported on Monday that during protests against the increase in gasoline prices in the city of Kazerun, the city's seminary was attacked and parts of it were set on fire.
In this regard, the Fars provincial administration issued a statement in which it "asked security and law enforcement officials to deal more seriously with opportunists and desecrators of sacred places."
The Fararou website has also published photos of the burned-out parts of this seminary.
It should be noted that in videos released from the protests, security forces dressed in special clothing and helmets with masks are seen breaking the windows of cars. On social media, the destruction and burning of places have been attributed to these forces.
IRGC: We will deal decisively with any insecurity
On Monday, November 18, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued a statement responding to popular protests and unrest caused by the increase in gasoline prices.
The statement states, among other things, that the Revolutionary Guard Corps, in cooperation with other powerful armed, law enforcement, and security forces, "considers maintaining the country's security as its legal duty and will deal decisively with any continuation of insecurity and actions that disrupt the peace and comfort of the people."
The Revolutionary Guards' statement thanked the people for "guaranteeing stability and peace in society during the recent events in most provinces and cities of the country, such that not a single report of insecurity, destruction, looting, or plundering of public property has been received from those areas."
According to news media, at least 12 people have been killed and around 1,000 arrested in the unrest in recent days. Unofficial reports indicate dozens more have died.
The Fararo website reported on Monday, November 17, that the seminary in Kazerun city was attacked by protesters and set on fire. The Fars province district administration issued a statement calling on security and law enforcement officials to “deal more seriously with opportunists.”
Ali Rabiei: Ensuring people's livelihoods was only possible by reforming gasoline prices
On Monday, November 18, Ali Rabiei, a spokesman for Hassan Rouhani's government, held a press conference regarding the consequences of the increase in gasoline prices. Rabiei stated in the meeting that the government "considers protesting as the people's right, but protesting is different from rioting."
Rabiei added in this regard, "Those who are worried about their livelihoods are held accountable separately from those who used weapons and shooting."
He pointed out that the issue of reforming the prices of energy carriers, especially gasoline, has been challenging for the past 60 years, and said that the implementation of the gasoline price increase plan was based on the decision of the Supreme Coordination Council of the Three Branches and the approval of the "Leadership Authority."
The government spokesman also emphasized that the government considers itself obligated to support the purchasing power of middle-class and poor households. He added in this regard: "The only way to ensure people's livelihoods in these circumstances was to correct the price of gasoline. The other way was to increase taxes, which had consequences for the country's production."
Aref calls for holding a meeting on gasoline with the participation of the heads of government
ISNA news agency quoted Fatemeh Saeedi, spokesperson for the Omid faction, as saying that Mohammad Reza Aref, head of the faction, had requested in a letter to the speaker of the parliament to hold a closed-door meeting, including with the presence of President Hassan Rouhani and Judiciary Chief Ebrahim Raisi.
According to Saeedi, Aref proposed holding a closed-door meeting to discuss and exchange views on "the failure of the nation's representatives to exercise sovereignty due to the restrictions imposed."
In his letter, the head of the Omid faction asked the speaker of the parliament to have the heads of the executive and judicial branches explain to the representatives how decisions were made regarding rationing and increasing the price of gasoline.
In this letter, Mohammad Reza Arif also suggested that security officials specifically submit a report on the measures taken to control the crisis in the past days and normalize the situation.
He suggested that the Minister of Communications be invited to attend the parliamentary session to explain to the representatives about "communication restrictions and the nation's rights to access communication tools, including the Internet."
The editor-in-chief of Kayhan magazine threatened to “eliminate the thugs.”
On Monday, November 18, Hossein Shariatmadari, the editor-in-chief of Kayhan magazine, in the publication's "Note of the Day" column, on the one hand, severely criticized the performance of the Rouhani government over the past seven years, and on the other hand, he also expressed threats against protesters against the increase in gasoline prices.
His writing states, among other things: "The seditionists and their behind-the-scenes employers have repeatedly tested the innocent nation and the self-sacrificing warriors of Islamic Iran, and they know that for those who have a track record of turning a blind eye to the seditions of 1978 and 1988, etc., it is also easily possible to eliminate these thugs."
In another part of the daily note, Shariatmadari attacked the government of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, writing: "With great regret, it must be said that over the past seven years, the people have witnessed numerous promises from the government, many of which have remained unfulfilled and unfulfilled. Instead of apologizing to the nation, the government has taken a surprising step of denying the promises or making statements about them that are untrue and contradictory to what it promised."
According to news and images published on social media, protests against the increase in gasoline prices continued in various cities of Iran on Sunday, November 16. According to these reports, a large number of protesters were killed and injured. Some videos show security forces directly shooting at the protesters. IRNA reported in a video report on the “destruction of public property in Tehran” and wrote that this destruction was caused by “a number of people abusing the public protests.” Mehr News Agency reported that a Basij member was killed in the protests in Mallard and Shahriar (Tehran Province).
Schools in Isfahan, Khuzestan and Alborz closed for no reason
Although domestic media outlets have reported normal conditions in the country and the return of peace to the cities, schools in the three provinces of Alborz, Isfahan, and Khuzestan have been closed without giving a reason. The Isfahan metro has also been closed due to "lack of security."
The Isfahan Provincial Supply Council announced the closure of schools in the city at all levels without giving a specific reason. The Fars Provincial Education Department's public relations department also announced the closure of schools in Shiraz on Monday without giving a specific reason.
The Alborz Governorate has announced that all schools in the province will be closed on Monday. The Khuzestan Governorate has also announced that schools in all grades will be closed on Monday, citing “air pollution” as the reason.
In all of these places, protests against the increase in gasoline prices have been taking place over the past few days.
It has also been reported that Sepideh Qolyan, a civil rights activist who was recently temporarily released on bail, has been arrested again by security forces. Video footage posted on social media shows her holding a placard at a public rally in Khuzestan, chanting: “No threats, no prisons, no more effect.” The placard reads: “You increased the price of gasoline by 300 percent, did you also increase wages?”
Isfahan Metro closed for second consecutive day
The deputy mayor of Isfahan for transportation and traffic has announced the closure of the city's metro due to "lack of security."
According to IRNA, Alireza Salavati said that Isfahan's urban train is ready to operate after "ensuring security" at stations in the north of the city.
Salavati reported damage to five urban stations in Isfahan on Saturday and Sunday.
The IRGC announced the arrest of two protest “leaders”
The Revolutionary Guards' intelligence organization in Fars province says it has arrested two of the "leaders" of protesters protesting the high price of gasoline in Shiraz.
According to Mashreq News, the IRGC claimed that the two individuals were ordered, “with the promise of accommodation and payment,” to “incite people and destroy key places and public property, and after making a film, send it to their leaders abroad.”
In addition, "setting fire to the police station, police cars, destroying government buildings and gas stations" is also considered part of the "mission of these two people."
Source: DW
