Iranian riot police and security forces have clashed with demonstrators in dozens of cities as protests raged on over the death of young Iranian woman Mahsa Amini in police custody.
Amini, 22, from the northwestern Kurdish city of Saqez, was arrested on September 13 in Tehran for “unsuitable attire” by the morality police who enforce the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code.
She died three days later in hospital after falling into a coma, sparking the first big show of opposition on Iran’s streets since authorities crushed protests against a rise in petrol prices in 2019.
Despite a growing death toll and a fierce crackdown using tear gas, clubs and live ammunition, videos posted on social media showed protesters calling for the fall of the clerical establishment while clashing with security forces in Tehran, Tabriz, Karaj, Qom, Yazd and many other Iranian cities.
Rights group Amnesty International said on Twitter that Iran’s security forces had responded to the protests with “unlawful force, including by using live ammunition, birdshot and other metal pellets, killing dozens of people and injuring hundreds of others”.
State media branded the protesters “hypocrites, rioters, thugs and seditionists”, while state television said police clashed with “rioters” in some cities.
Videos posted on social media from inside Iran showed protesters chanting, “Woman, Life, Liberty”, while women waved and burnt their veils.
Read the article by Parisa Hafezi in The Canberra Times.