Anti-govt protests spread in Iran

Tehran : Some 200 protesters marched through central Tehran yesterday as authorities braced for a possible fourth night of unrest and cut access to social media after days of unrest that saw two people killed. A security deputy for Tehran’s governor told the ILNA news agency that 200 people had been arrested after protests on Saturday night -- including 40 “leaders”.

The interior minister warned that protesters will “pay the price” as footage on social media showed thousands marching across the country overnight in the biggest test for the Islamic republic since mass demonstrations in 2009.

The demonstrations began in second city Mashhad on Thursday over high living costs, but quickly spread and turned against the Islamic system as a whole, with slogans such as “Death to the dictator”. Lorestan province deputy governor Habibollah Khojastehpour told state television that two people were killed in clashes in the small western town of Dorud late Saturday, but denied security forces were responsible.

In an apparent attempt to stave off more unrest, the authorities began blocking access to photo sharing and online messaging services on mobile phones, including Telegram, which the government accused of being used to foment violence, local media and Telegram’s CEO said. The conservative-linked Fars news agency said around 200 people were taking part in the latest protest in Tehran.

“Contrary to rumours from hostile media, most parts of Tehran are calm. Around 200 people are occasionally chanting here and there,” it said.Fars said shops closed early Sunday “for fear of damage to their shops by rioters”.

‘Pay the price’ -

After initial silence, state media has shown footage of unrest, focusing on young men violently targeting banks and vehicles, an attack on a town hall in Tehran, and images of a man burning the Iranian flag.

“Those who damage public property, disrupt order and break the law must be responsible for their behaviour and pay the price,” Interior Minister Abdolrahman Rahmani Fazli said on state television. “The spreading of violence, fear and terror will definitely be confronted,” he added. US President Donald Trump said the “big protests” showed people “were getting wise as to how their money and wealth is being stolen and squandered on terrorism”.

“Looks like they will not take it any longer,” he wrote on Twitter, warning that Washington is “watching very closely for human rights violations!”