Ned Price: US condemns crackdown on peaceful protests in Iran
US State Department spokesman Ned Price condemned the use of violence during peaceful protests in Iran. More than 100 protesting teachers have been arrested, including in the cities of Shiraz, Qazvin and cities in the Kurdistan province.
During a press conference in Washington on Thursday, June 16, regarding Iran's recent crackdown, US State Department spokesman Ned Price said that the United States condemns the use of violence in peaceful protests and supports the protesters' rights to enjoy their fundamental freedoms.
Price noted that the Iranian people want the government to respond to their legitimate demands, adding that "the Iranian government's mismanagement has led to the people's most basic needs not being met."
The US State Department spokesperson also criticized the disruption of Iranian people's access to the internet.
Ned Price's remarks come two days after a group of UN human rights experts, including Javed Rehman, the Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, expressed concern over the violent repression of protesters and trade unions and teachers in Iran.
The experts said in a statement that five people have been killed in the past month and a half in wider protests due to "the use of extreme violence by security forces."
100 teachers arrested in Iran
Meanwhile, the arrest of protesting teachers continued on Thursday, June 16. Several news sources reported the arrest of 100 teachers, including in Shiraz, Qazvin, and cities in the Kurdistan province.
Despite severe repression, protests in Iran have not subsided.
Following a call from the Coordination Council of Educators' Unions, teachers and educators held protest rallies in various cities in Iran on Thursday, June 16.
According to images published on social media, teachers' gatherings have been held in the cities of Karaj, Tehran, Malayer, Rasht, Zanjan, Ardabil, Khorramabad, Bandar Abbas, Hamedan, Andimeshk, Islamabad, Harsin, Abdanan, Saqqez, Sanandaj, Bukan, and Marivan.
