Thousands of Iranians demonstrated in the restive southeast on Friday to mark the September 30 crackdown by security forces known as ‘Bloody Friday’, as the country’s religious leaders battled lingering unrest on a national scale.
Amnesty International said security forces unlawfully killed at least 66 people in September after firing on protesters in Zahedan, the capital of Sistan-Balochistan province. Authorities said dissidents provoked the clashes
A video posted by the widely followed Tasvir 1500 Activists Twitter account claimed to show thousands of people marching again in Zahedan on Friday. Reuters could not verify the authenticity of the images.
Another video which 1,500 Tasvir said came from the southeastern town of Khash, showed protesters stomping and smashing a road sign bearing the name of top general Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated in a drone attack American in 2020 in Iraq.
Popular anger ahead of the Sept. 30 shooting was fuelled by allegations of the rape of a local teenage girl by a police officer. Authorities have said the case is being investigated.
Anti-government demonstrations also started erupting that month after the death of a Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, who morality police had detained for allegedly flouting the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code imposed on women
Nationwide protests have since escalated into a popular revolt, with the participation of students, doctors, lawyers, workers and athletes, with fury directed primarily at Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
A group of countries led by Germany and Iceland have requested a debate on the ‘deteriorating’ situation in Iran at the UN’s top human rights body later this month, a document says.