Iran Protest Crackdown Engulfs Prominent Child of Revolution
(Bloomberg) -- Iran arrested the daughter of a former president for “inciting rioters” in the capital Tehran, the latest sign of both swelling support among high-profile Iranians for protests gripping the country and the government’s intent to end them.
In its report, the semi-official Tasnim news agency didn’t say what Faezeh Hashemi, who was previously a lawmaker and is the daughter of ex-President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, had done to encourage the unrest ahead of her detention late on Tuesday.
Demonstrators have taken to the streets across the nation since Sept. 16 to condemn the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of morality police after she was arrested over her clothing.
Why a Woman’s Death in Iran Has Ignited New Protests: QuickTake
Hashemi, who wears the long Islamic covering known as the chador, has clashed with authorities over government policies before. She was arrested after protests in 2009 and indicted this year on charges of sacrilege and acting against the regime, after allegations that she insulted the Prophet Muhammad. Her father was a co-founder of the Islamic Republic and a two-time president who died in 2017.
Authorities last commented on casualties from the protests on Saturday, when state media said 41 people had died. Oslo-based Iran Human Rights said Tuesday it had confirmed the death of 76 protesters.
On Wednesday, the security forces vowed to keep fighting “conspirators” and “deal decisively with those who disrupt public order from the borders to the center,” according to a statement published by the Fars news agency.
Strikes on Iraq
Also on Wednesday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps resumed attacks on what it called “terrorists” in northern Iraq, using missiles and drones. By late afternoon in the region, the IRGC had fired 72 missiles at the area, according to state TV.
The state-run Islamic Republic News Agency published photos of rubble and destroyed buildings that it said were targeted in the strikes, and part of a camp it reported was used by the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan which wants self-determination for Kurds. Fars published footage of the strikes, showing thick plumes of smoke rising into the sky.
The Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, which is also based in Oslo, said two women had been killed and a refugee camp targeted by Iran’s military. Forces started the strikes at the weekend, saying Kurdish militant groups there were fanning the protests.
The region borders northwestern Iran, where Kurdish communities have been particularly vocal in protesting the death of Amini, who was from the town of Saghez in Kurdistan province.
(Adds comments from Iran’s security forces and airstrike deaths from human rights group.)
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Author: Patrick Sykes, Arsalan Shahla and Golnar Motevalli
