December 1, 2022
The uprising in Iran, well into its third month, continues to defy expectations, persisting even amid an increasingly violent crackdown and opponents of clerical rule uniting across class and ethnic lines.
The movement, born out of long-seething anger over decades of repression, cascaded after police arrested 22-year-old Mahsa Amini — also known by her Kurdish name, Jina — in a Tehran metro station for violating Iran’s conservative dress code for women, then allegedly beat her to death and tried to cover it up. What began in Amini’s hometown in a Kurdish-dominated province has grown into a sustained, nationwide challenge to the regime — and one not easily defeated.
As weeks passed, the government escalated its deadly crackdown, especially in Kurdish areas, but the demonstrations persisted. They have left Iran’s leadership in what appears to be at an impasse, unsure of how far to go to regain control. The regime could fully unleash the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to crush the movement, but it would risk drawing even more ire from opponents at home and inviting further international condemnation.
“I feel it is not too late to save myself and others in my generation,” Nazanin, a university student in the city of Azad, told The Washington Post. Out of concern for her safety, she gave only her first name. She had seen no future for herself in Iran, she said, until the protests changed her, “like they changed many people.”
Day after day, demonstrators chant “woman, life, freedom” and “death to the dictator,” and burn images of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Women cast off headscarves, standing side by side with demonstrators who choose to wear them.
Major social upheaval is afoot — but Iran’s clerical leadership and the security forces backing it remain strong. At the first sign of unrest, authorities followed a familiar playbook. They cut off internet and cellular access, violently disrupted protests and launched mass arrest and intimidation campaigns, even targeting doctors and schools. More than 400 people have been killed, among them more than 60 minors, and more than 18,000 arrested, human rights group Hrana estimates. On-the-ground reporting is extremely difficult under the circumstances, so exact numbers are impossible to determine.
Each death, arrest and raid add to the public outrage. But Iran’s security state was built to withstand popular unrest. The Shiite revolutionaries who rose to power in 1979 created a parallel security force, the Revolutionary Guard, and a separate legal system, the Revolutionary Courts, to protect the Islamic Republic and its supreme leader.
Part of what’s changed is that many Iranians have given up on reform. Even if Tehran were to crush the protests or offer concessions — the latter which it rarely does — many Iranians have come to reject core values of the Islamic Republic. “Even if it’s repressed, there is a new discourse, new sense of defiance,” said Mohammad Ali Kadivar, a sociologist at Boston College who studies protest movements in Iran.
For decades, people have borne the daily injustices of an authoritarian theocracy structured around gender segregation. Young Iranians in particular “have seen declining living standards, every effort of reform closed off” and have “grown up with very little if any ideological attachment to the Islamic Republic,” said Manijeh Moradian, an assistant professor of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Barnard College who studies the Iranian diaspora.
The uprising is fueled by women and young people, but it’s leaderless in part because the state has arrested, exiled or sidelined most opposition figures. In 2009, millions of Iranians protested electoral fraud. The demonstrations were violently suppressed. In 2017 and 2019, thousands revolted against economic grievances and government mismanagement, and authorities killed hundreds in the resulting crackdown. Iranians know a worse crackdown could come, as when thousands of people were killed in purges in the decade after the revolution.
The United States and Europe have left themselves few good options for a response. Before the uprising, Iran was already under extensive sanctions, among the most of any country. Decades of economic isolation — coupled with internal corruption and mismanagement — have devastated the economy.
In recent weeks, Washington and Brussels have reacted by designating more individuals and institutions involved in the violence. Ali Vaez, of the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, said while “morally justified, in practice they amount to feel-good policies” for the West, with little effect on Iran’s leadership. Broader sanctions, meanwhile, serve to punish Iranians collectively, intentionally or not, and have “empowered” the Revolutionary Guard, which controls much of Iran’s formal and black-market economy, he said.
In recent years, Western diplomatic engagement with Iran has centered around securing (and now resecuring) a nuclear deal, which would include sanctions relief. But as a result, there has been a “reluctance” to address other issues, such as Iran’s human rights violations, said Ali Fathollah-Nejad, a German-Iranian political scientist.
Iran has blamed the protests on “foreign instigators,” particularly Iran’s foes — such as America, Israel and Saudi Arabia — though it also remains sensitive to its international image. Pressure is growing at the United Nations, whose human rights body last week voted to create an independent fact-finding mission on the crackdown. Iran’s Foreign Ministry has vowed not to participate.
But many Iranians these days are very connected to the wider world online and crave an end to international isolation. In recent weeks, Iranian athletes have displayed small signs of solidarity with the uprising at international sporting events, much to the state’s chagrin. The unrest spilled over to the World Cup, where regime opponents and supporters clashed, and Iran’s national team has struggled to balance signals for tacit support for protesters and the need to ensure their own safety.
Back in Iran, people continue to be killed, arrested and scared into silence. Khamenei on Saturday praised the Basij, a volunteer militia connected to the Revolutionary Guard, in another sign that the violence could continue to worsen.
The movement does not seem set to fade on its own. Iran’s clerical leaders, and the security state behind them, will have to decide how far they are willing to go. Many supporters of the movement in Iran see international attention as one of their few, albeit limited, defenses.
“We will be on the streets until the day we find some peace from this constant injustice and oppression,” a 30-year-old woman from Sanandaj in Kurdistan province told The Post last month. Despite a near-total communication outage, she spoke anonymously out of concern for her safety — with the hope of one day speaking freely.
Iranian forces kill man celebrating country’s World Cup loss, activists say
December 1, 2022
An Iranian man — a childhood friend of a midfielder on the country’s World Cup squad — was killed by Iranian state forces while celebrating the country’s loss against the United States in the World Cup this week, human rights groups based outside the country reported, as mass anti-government protests continue in Iran.
Mehran Samak, 27, was shot in the head Tuesday evening as he joined festivities in the northwestern city of Bandar Anzali, according to the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) organization. Another group, the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran, said Samak was reportedly killed by security forces while honking his car’s horn as part of celebrations in cities across the country.
In footage on social media depicting scenes across the country overnight after the match, car horns can be heard being blasted in celebration after the defeat of the Team Melli, as the squad is known in Iran, in what could be interpreted as a blow to the country’s rulers.
The Washington Post could not independently verify the reports surrounding Samak’s death. But his death was mourned by one of Iran’s national soccer players, who posted an image of them together as children and described Samak as a “childhood teammate.”
“I wish we had stayed this age forever,” Saeid Ezatolahi wrote on Instagram. “After last night’s bitter game, my heart burned even more at the news of your death.”
The Center for Human Rights in Iran on Wednesday shared a video purporting to show Samak’s funeral, with mourners chanting anti-government slogans including “Death to the dictator.”
The refrain — which refers to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — has become a feature of the protests that have gripped Iran since the death in September of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman, in police custody.
Amini died three days after being detained by “morality police” over allegedly improperly wearing a hijab, the mandatory head covering. The case spurred a wave of unrest that quickly grew from anger against Iran’s strict Islamic dress code to opposition to the country’s authorities.
The Iranian news agency the Young Journalists Club, which is affiliated with the country’s state broadcaster, reported Thursday that Samak’s body had been found after “rioters” gathered in Bandar Anzali. Quoting a local police official, the website said Samak was killed with a “hunting weapon” and that authorities had arrested a number of suspects.
Iran has launched a brutal crackdown on the protest movement, which it has blamed on foreign countries without providing evidence of a link.
Some 459 people have been killed in the anti-government protests so far, the Human Rights Activists News Agency reported.
Separately Wednesday, the Oslo-based IHR raised concerns about a number of protesters who it said could be executed imminently. Quoting media reports, the group said that six people had been sentenced to death and that 26 others were facing charges for which they can be executed.
Iranian security forces kill anti-government protester celebrating World Cup defeat, rights group says
Jomana Karadsheh & Celine Alkhaldi
December 1, 2022
A man is reported to have been killed by security forces in northern Iran during public celebrations by anti-government protesters following the national football team’s defeat against the United States on Tuesday.
Norway-based rights group Iran Human Rights (IHR) said Mehran Samak was shot in the head by security personnel when he was out celebrating in Bandar Anzali Tuesday night. IHR said they confirmed the information through “several independent sources.”
“His name was #MehranSamak. He was shot in the head by state forces when he went out to celebrate the Islamic Republic’s loss at FIFA World Cup2022 in Bandar Anzali last night like many across the country. He was just 27 years old,” Iran Human Rights said on Wednesday.
IHR and other activist groups had initially reported that authorities were holding Samak’s body and were refusing to hand it back to his family. IHR shared a video showing people gathered outside the state’s Forensic Medical Organization demanding the body be returned to his family.
Later on Wednesday, pro-reform news outlet IranWire shared video showing crowds at Samak’s funeral in Bandar Anzali chanting “death to dictator.”
Samak was a close friend of Saeid Ezatolahi, a member of Iran’s national football team, who had just returned to Iran after the team’s exit from the World Cup in Qatar. The footballer posted a tribute to his childhood friend on Instagram on Wednesday.
“I wish we could always stay at the same age…. without any concerns, without hate, without jealousy, without fighting to put each other down…. There is much to say my childhood team mate but unfortunately people are drowning in ego and jealousy and becoming a mess that you can hardly even find people listening to these words or they don’t exist at all…
“Definitely after another bitter night last night and with the news of your death, my heart is even more on fire.”
Iranian prosecutor Mehdi Fallah Miri said a case into the “suspicious” killing of Samak had been opened after he died “due to a pellet bullet,” the state-aligned Iran Students’ News Agency (ISNA) reported Thursday.
“As soon as this suspicious incident happened, a case was opened to deal with the issue and the prosecutor of Bandar Anzali is handling the case,” Miri added, according to ISNA.
Several videos were posted on social media Tuesday night showing people in cities across Iran, including in the capital Tehran, celebrating inside their homes and residential buildings after the US defeated Iran 1-0 in the World Cup.
“I am happy, this is the government losing to the people,” one witness to celebrations in a city in the Kurdish region told CNN on Wednesday. CNN is not naming the witness for security concerns.
Activist outlet 1500tasvir also posted videos showing security forces reportedly on Tuesday night, opening fire at people in Behbahan and beating up a woman in Qazvin, both cities south of Bandar Anzali where Samak is said to have been shot.
CNN cannot independently confirm the information as Iran’s government is not allowing foreign media into the country, and has not been transparent in its reporting on protests and protest casualties.
Demonstrations have rocked Iran for several months, sparking a deadly clampdown from authorities.
The nationwide uprising was first ignited by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman who died in mid-September after being detained by the country’s morality police. Since then, protesters across Iran have coalesced around a range of grievances with the regime.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Chief, Volker Turk, has said that the country is in a “full-fledged human rights crisis” as authorities crack down on the protests.
Iranian protesters celebrate World Cup defeat, as fears surround players' return
November 30, 2022
Iran’s World Cup defeat to the United States was met by cheers and celebrations in Tehran and other Iranian cities on Tuesday evening, as protesters hailed the country’s exit from the tournament as a blow to the ruling regime.
The nation was eliminated from the tournament in Qatar after its 1-0 loss on Tuesday, ending a campaign that has been overshadowed by anti-government protests that have raged for months at home.
But there are concerns about the safety of the Iranian players returning home across the Persian Gulf, after the team initially refused to sing Iran’s national anthem before their first game in an apparent show of solidarity with demonstrators. The team’s families were also threatened with imprisonment and torture in advance of the match, a source involved in the security of the games said.
People in several Iranian cities celebrated from inside their homes and residential buildings moments after the final whistle, which came in the early hours of Wednesday local time, while videos posted on social media showed people honking their car horns, chanting and whistling.
People in Iran celebrated the national team's defeat to the US on Tuesday night. - mamlekate/Telegram
“I am happy, this is the government losing to the people,” one witness to celebrations in a city in the Kurdish region, who CNN is not naming for security concerns, told CNN on Wednesday.
The Norway-based Iranian rights group Hengaw posted several videos of similar scenes. “People in Paveh are celebrating Iran’s national team lose over America in World Cup in Qatar, they are chanting ‘Down with Jash (traitors),” Hengaw said in a post.
Demonstrations have rocked Iran for several months, sparking a deadly clampdown from authorities. The nationwide uprising was first ignited by the death of Mahsa (also known as Zhina) Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman who died in mid-September after being detained by the country’s morality police. Since then, protesters across Iran have coalesced around a range of grievances with the regime.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Chief, Volker Turk, has said that the country is in a “full-fledged human rights crisis” as authorities crack down on the protests.
Football has become an increasingly heated flashpoint in recent weeks, with the World Cup throwing a global spotlight on the turmoil inside the country.
And fans following the team in Qatar have become increasingly conflicted about their support. “Our team has been hijacked,” longtime fan Farshad Soheil told CNN. “It no longer represents the people of Iran.”
Soheili said Iran’s regime has managed to politicize and weaponize the team, and was critical of the players for not making a grander statement about the protests. “It was a wasted historical opportunity,” Soheili said.
Ahead of Tuesday’s game, many supporters said they didn’t want Iran to win. “The reason is not because of football reason, [but] because of political reasons,” another fan called Farshid – who withheld his last name for security reasons – told CNN in Doha.
“I have mixed emotion(s) and feeling(s),” Farshid said. “I’m a passionate supporter of Iran but today unfortunately I can’t be supporter of the national team because of the current situation going on and the government trying to hijack the game and sport and using it as a platform to buy credibility and to show that everything is normal (with) what’s going on in Iran.”
Farshid said a lot of pro-regime supporters have also attended Iran’s World Cup games in Doha and created a very tense environment for other Iranian fans by attempting to interfere with their interviews with the media.
Concerns over returning players
Iran’s national side would have progressed to the second round of the World Cup with a win or draw against the US, but the team will now travel home after its group stage exit.
“I’m really sorry on behalf of our players, our group, that we couldn’t get our opportunity to qualify for the next round,” midfielder Saeid Ezatolah told reporters after the game. “I hope our fans and our people in Iran, they forgive us. And I feel just sorry, that’s it.”
The team’s return will be closely watched amid fears that the players could face retribution for a perceived brief show of support for the protests, which drew international attention and praise from human rights groups.
The country’s flag and national anthem have been rejected by protesters as symbols of the current regime. And, following the refusal of Iranian players to sing Iran’s national anthem in their opening match against England on November 21, a source involved in the security of the games told CNN that the players were called to a meeting with members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The source said that they were told that their families would face “violence and torture” if they did not sing the national anthem or if they joined any political protest against the Tehran regime.
The players sang the anthem on Tuesday, and before their second game against Wales last Friday, which saw 2-0 victory for Iran.
Hours before the game kicked off on Tuesday, Iranian authorities said a former member of the national soccer team, Parviz Boroumand – who was arrested this month over criticism of the government – was released on bail, according to state news agency IRNA.
Boroumand had been arrested in mid-November during protests in Tehran, Iranian media outlets reported. Earlier on Tuesday, Iranian-Kurdish footballer Voria Ghafouri was also released on bail.
Iranian football legend Ali Karimi, sometimes referred to as the “Asian Maradona,” has meanwhile said he has received death threats through his family members after he vocally supported protests.
The government has described him as one of the “main leaders” of the demonstrations, and issued a warrant for his arrest in early October charging him with “harmonizing with the enemy” and “encouraging riots,” according to Iran’s Supreme Council of the Judiciary, both charges that are punishable by death.
Tehran and Moscow will create a joint trade council
November 30, 2022
An Iranian-Russian Trade Council will be established to remove obstacles to industrial and commercial cooperation between the private sectors of the two countries, IRNA reported on November 30.
The council will be established as a joint body between the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) and the Iranian Trade Promotion Organisation (TPO). The council comes as trade between the two partners continues to expand as Western companies leave the Russian market due to sanctions placed on the country because of the Kremlin's war against Ukraine.
The council will officially begin work on November 30, simultaneously with a visit to Russia by a trade delegation from the Iranian province of Isfahan, consisting of 50 people.The Iranian delegation will be headed by TPO head Alireza Peyman-Pak.
During the visit to Russia, which is aimed at strengthening and developing provincial cooperation between Iran and Russia, Iranian businessmen will hold several meetings with their Russian counterparts in Moscow and then travel to St. Petersburg to explore further possibilities forcooperation.
The Iranian delegation's visit to Russia follows a recent visit by a senior federation trade delegation to the Islamic Republic.
On November 15, a Iranian-Russian business forum was held at the Espinas Palace Hotel in the Iranian capital Tehran, where Iranian and Russian traders and officials exchanged views on expanding economic cooperation.
The event, organised by the Iranian Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mining and Agriculture (ICCIMA), was attended by a Russian delegation of 120 people, as well as businessmen and officials from Iran.
According to an April report from the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), in the latest Iranian calendar year (ended March 20), trade in goods between Iran and Russia amounted to $4.63bn.
Earlier in November,
Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation Igor Evgenyevich Levitin
also visited Iran as part of a high-ranking delegation to meet with Rostam
Qasemi, the former Minister of Transport and Urban Development of Iran, and
discuss expanding transport links.
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