Protesters faced off with security forces in Iran’s restive south-east on Friday to mark the anniversary of a 30th September, 2022, crackdown by security forces known as “Bloody Friday”, according to rights groups and social media videos.
Videos posted on the X platform by the Iran Human Rights group showed marchers confronting security forces in Zahedan, capital of the south-eastern Sistan-Baluchistan province, as apparent sounds of shooting are heard.
IHR and the Baluch rights group Hal Vash said at least 23 people had been injured. Reuters could not verify the report or the authenticity of the videos.
Protests continued into the night, with several videos posted online purporting to show protesters setting fire to tyres to block streets in Zahedan.
Zahedan’s prosecutor had earlier said the city was calm and videos showing the injured were old, the state news agency IRNA reported. The semi-official news agency Tasnim said police had used tear gas to disperse “a few people who had gathered and were throwing rocks at security forces”.
In the 30th September crackdown, security forces killed at least 66 people, according to Amnesty International. Authorities accused protesters, angered by the alleged rape of a girl from the Baluch minority by a police commander, of provoking the clashes.
Internet monitor Netblocks reported a “significant disruption” to the internet in Zahedan on Friday, saying authorities had “systematically shut down telecoms to suppress weekly anti-government protests.”
Read the article in Sight Magazine (Reuters).