Iranians have demonstrated in over 50 cities and towns. At least 35 people have been killed in the clashes, according to the authorities. Human rights organizations believe that close to 60 have been killed. Several thousand are believed to have been arrested, without the protests having diminished in strength. Now the authorities will deploy special forces to crack down on the demonstrations. What triggered the protests? The death of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman, who died in police custody has sparked the protests. Here from protests outside the UN building in New York. Photo: AFP Iranians took to the streets after Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman, was arrested by the so-called morality police in the capital Tehran. They are the ones who, among other things, check that women follow the strict dress code in Iran. Masha Amini was taken to the police station because she had not adequately covered her hair. But then she dies in police custody. Authorities say she died of a heart attack. They have released a surveillance video from the police station which shows Amini collapsing and falling to the floor. But Amini’s family and the protesters reject this. They believe she was killed in police custody. When the young woman was declared dead on September 16, it sparked protests that quickly spread across Iran. But there is more to the anger and frustration of young Iranians. For many years, Iran has experienced sky-high inflation and unemployment. There is little economic development. The country has been under Western sanctions for over 40 years. It has paralyzed development in Iran. At the same time, the authorities spend billions of kroner on supporting various Shia Muslim groups in Yemen, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon. This has caused great resentment among many young Iranians who see little hope for their own future in the country. Who are the protesters and what do they demand? The demonstrators are young women and men who protest in the streets every night. Photo: AFP They are mostly young Iranians. In many places, it is women who lead the demonstration trains. They have taken off their hijab in protest and are waving it in front of security forces. Most of the people who are out in the streets belong to the millennial generation who say that they cannot bear to live according to conservative rules of living set by the regime. The protests follow a particular pattern. They go up at sunset because the protesters feel safer when it gets dark. Then they continue through the night. They shout slogans like “Zann, zindagi, Azadi”, which means “woman, life, freedom”. The demonstrators demand that those responsible for the death of Mahsa Amini be brought to justice. They demand that the morality police be removed. And then there are increasingly loud demands for regime change. Many of the protesters say they want full freedom, and that they no longer want to live oppressed. At the same time, thousands of regime supporters have also taken to the streets. State Iranian television has broadcast images of several large demonstrations in support of the regime. This shows that the Iranian population is deeply divided. On one side are young, urban, secular Iranians who say they have had enough of the regime’s control over their lives. On the opposite side, you have Iranians who stand firmly by the side of those in power. The regime’s supporters fear that Iran will end up as a new Iraq or Syria if the regime loses its grip on power. What makes these riots different from previous protests in Iran? Mobilization in social media has meant that the demonstrations against the regime have spread far beyond Iran’s borders. Here from Istanbul. Photo: AP There are three major differences: Women and very young demonstrators are leading the demonstrations. Most belong to the millennial generation – people who are between 18-25 years old. Many of them have no relation to the conservative principles on which the Islamic Republic was founded. This is the online generation that is tired of living by the strict rules of the regime and wants to break away. The demonstrators are organized in a way that makes it more difficult for the authorities to crack down on them. They have no central leadership. They operate independently of each other. So even if security forces crack down on a demonstration in one district of Tehran, protests may continue elsewhere. The protesters have shown a willingness to stand up to security forces. In the past, heavily armed security forces have managed to chase protesters off the streets. Now they are fighting back. They beat up policemen, they set fire to their cars, and they have also taken over government buildings in some places. They show a will to fight that has surprised the authorities. How do the authorities react? Supporters of the authorities have also taken to the streets to show their support for the regime. Photo: AFP The authorities see the protesters as instigators, people who want to create chaos and destabilize Iran. They believe they are supported by foreign powers. This often means countries such as Israel and the United States. They believe the Americans are doing what they can to weaken Iran when the country’s leaders are in the final stages of intense negotiations over their nuclear program with the Western world. Therefore, they will not allow the protests. They have deployed a number of specially trained security forces to quell the protests. We are talking about both anti-terrorist forces and militias who have experience of cracking down on demonstrations from Syria, according to the BBC. The authorities have also shut down internet access in parts of Iran. Every afternoon after 1600, internet access is throttled in many places in Iran. They have blocked popular social media such as Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Protesters and activists have used these platforms to spread videos and images to mobilize the masses inside and outside of Iran. In addition, it has been important to document what happens on Iranian streets. The authorities believe this leads to social unrest, and have therefore closed access to these services. This has made it very challenging to get information about what is actually happening in Iran. The authority has deployed a number of units from the police and military against the demonstrators. Photo: AP
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Four things you should know about the riots in Iran – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
