An Iranian general on Monday acknowledged the deaths of more than 300 people during protests across the country in defense of human rights, the first official statements on the number of casualties in two months.
This estimate is significantly lower than the number reported by the non-governmental organization (NGO) Iran Human Rights, a US-based group that has closely monitored the protests since they erupted after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. so-called morality police in Tehran for allegedly violating the strict dress code imposed on women in the Islamic Republic.
O The action group reports that since the start of the unrest, 451 protesters and 60 members of the security forces have been killed and more than 18,000 people have been arrested.
Protests across the country were sparked by the death of this young woman, but quickly turned into calls for the overthrow of the Islamic theocracy that has ruled Iran since the 1979 revolution.
General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the aerospace division of the Revolutionary Guards, Iran’s paramilitary body, told a website close to this internal security force that more than 300 people were killed, including “martyrs”, a clear reference to the security forces.
The same source also suggested that many of the dead were ordinary Iranians who were not involved in the protests.
Hajizadeh did not give an exact number or reveal what data supported his estimate.
This commander reiterated the official claim that the protests were fomented by Iran’s enemies, including Western countries and Saudi Arabia, without providing any evidence.
Protesters, however, say they are tired of decades of social and political repression and deny having a foreign agenda.
Protests spread across the country, drawing support from artists, athletes and other public figures.
The niece of Iran’s Supreme Leader ‘Ayatollah’ Ali Khamenei recently urged people to put pressure on their governments to cut ties with Tehran over its violent crackdown on demonstrations.
In a video posted online by her brother who lives in France, Farideh Moradkhani urged “conscious people of the world” to support the Iranian protesters.
The video was shared this week after Moradkhani’s alleged arrest on November 23, the activist group said.
The protests, now entering their third month, were met with brutal crackdown by Iranian security forces who used live ammunition, rubber bullets and tear gas to quell the demonstrations.
The government of Iran announced today that it will not cooperate with the United Nations independent mission that is preparing to investigate violations of fundamental freedoms in the country following the death of young Mahsa Amini.
“Iran will not cooperate in any way with the mission on alleged human rights issues,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Naser Kanani said at a news conference.
“Tehran condemns the impulsive use of human rights issues against independent nations,” the Iranian diplomatic spokesman stressed.
The resolution provides for the establishment of an independent fact-finding mission to “gather and analyze evidence” of post-repression human rights violations.
Source: DN
