Protesters attacked the offices of Khamenei's representatives in cities; names of 9 seminaries and offices of Friday imams
Some citizen journalist reports to Voice of America indicate that protesters have targeted the offices of Khamenei's representatives in the cities where the protests took place.
A video sent to Voice of America shows the office of the Friday prayer imam in Sadra town near Shiraz being set on fire.
It also appears that the office of the representative of the Supreme Leader and the Friday prayer leader in Yazd was also targeted. On Monday, state news agencies reported that several attackers of the office of the Friday prayer leader in Yazd had been arrested. The office of Ayatollah Mohammad Reza Naseri Yazdi, the representative of the Supreme Leader in Yazd, was attacked.
Radio Farda also mentioned this list of places affiliated with the religious seminaries and Friday prayer imams in the cities:
- The office of the Friday Imam of Quds City in the west of Tehran
- Friday Imam's Office, Bandar Imam, Khuzestan
- Imam Mahdi Seminary in Ahvaz
- Kowsar Women's Seminary in Fardis, Karaj
- Zeinabiyeh Seminary of Isfahan
- Salihiya Seminary, Al-Sadiq School, Kazerun
- Khatam Al-Anbiya Seminary, Shiraz
Many protesters in recent days chanted slogans such as "Tank cannons explode, the mullah must disappear."
The White House issued a statement Sunday evening in support of the protesters in Iran, saying in part that the United States condemns the use of deadly force and severe restrictions on communications against demonstrators.
Public protests began on Friday, November 14, after news of a sudden tripling of the price of free gasoline in various cities in Iran was released. However, the protesters' slogans soon reached the attention of senior officials of the Islamic Republic.
Video footage and reports sent to VOA from the protests on Saturday, November 15, show that at least seven people were killed in police shootings in the cities of Shiraz, Baharestan, Karaj, Shahriar, Behbahan, Marivan, and Sirjan. However, their identities are still unknown.
In his first response to the widespread protests in Iran, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo retweeted a tweet from a year and a half ago on Saturday, November 15, and wrote to the Iranian people: "The United States stands with you."
The Islamic Republic shut down the internet in major cities on Saturday night, and US State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus responded to the Iranian regime's move by saying, "We condemn efforts to shut down the internet. Let them [the people] have their say!"
The United States says the Islamic Republic is spending its country's wealth on supporting terrorist groups and destabilizing the Middle East instead of its people.
The United States has also repeatedly condemned institutionalized financial corruption and the plundering of Iran's God-given assets by the regime's affiliates, citing them as the main causes of Iran's economic and financial problems. Not long ago, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted about the Islamic Republic's officials that they were involved in corruption instead of helping the people.
Source: Voice of America
