As Iran revolts, president vows to deal with protests
As the people of Iran continue to rise against the country’s Islamic regime, authorities are making some remarks. On Friday, the Iranian army said that it will confront “the enemies” behind the protests.
Meanwhile, Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi yesterday vowed to “deal decisively” with the protests. Raisi noted that it was necessary to differentiate between protests and disturbing security. He has called the protests “a riot.”
Protests have spread like wildfire throughout Iran ever since a young woman died on September 16 after being arrested by the so-called “morality police.” The morality police arrested her for violating Iran’s strict dress code for women.
Raisi said that the woman’s death will be investigated, but insisted that she was not beaten.
Since the death, protests have spread to 31 provinces, and the number of protesters killed by authorities has climbed to 35.
A police chief from the north-western province of Guilan said yesterday that about 739 people, including 60 women, have been detained in his region alone.
Images of Iranian women setting their headscarves on fire, security forces’ vehicles set ablaze, and officials’ pictures being defaced and burned have been blasted worldwide.
Iran’s government has since restricted Instagram and Facebook, censoring the country’s flow of information.
The protests are the biggest in Iran ever since the country experienced a fuel crisis in 2019 when 1,500 people were reportedly killed.
Iran severely restricts women’s rights in many ways and has done so ever since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. The country still maintains a dress code requiring women to cover their arms and legs, and wear headscarves.
It’s illegal in Iran for women to voluntarily sterilise themselves since the government wants to promote “traditional” families. Women cannot leave the country without their husbands’ permission. Several activists who have spoken out for women’s rights in Iran have been imprisoned, tortured, and killed by the government.
