At Least One Demonstrator Killed in Southwestern Iran Protests

protest
Adelle Nazarian

WASHINGTON, DC – At least one person died during a violent protest against the Iranian regime in the southwestern Iranian city of Kazeroun on Wednesday after a small group of protesters organized the demonstration using the social media networking platform Telegram.

The Campaign for Human Rights in Iran and Shahin Gobadi, the European spokesman for the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), report that at least three people have died.

“Our enemy is right here. They’re wrong to say it’s America,” protesters chanted in a video posted online, according to Radio Farda.

According to Radio Farda, the protests escalated after weeks of “peaceful protests” in Kazeroun “against a decision of the local administration to separate some districts of the city and merge them into a new town.”

The publication noted that one of the protesters’ most elaborate slogans was “Our enemy is here. But they always say it’s America.”

“The regime has cut off all internet and mobile phone connections in Kazerun,” Gobadi told Breitbart News via email on Wednesday. He said he acquired the information from the network of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) inside Iran. “In response to a public call for a day of mourning in the city, all the shops and banks are closed.”

He added, “People throw stones at the anti-riot forces and express their outrage over the savagery and brutal arrests that took place in the city on Wednesday.”

Outcry against the regime was widespread across social media, including from Iran’s Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, who tweeted, “This regime has spilled Iranian blood again, this time in #Kazeroun. My heart beats for the brave, noble people of this city – with steadfast resolve and remarkable courage, they continue to advance the unrelenting pursuit of freedom & democracy in Iran.”

Iranian-American scientist Firouz Naderi also weighed in against the Iranian regime saying the “whole Regime must go.” He tweeted, “At one time I thought there is a moderate faction of Islamic Republic which is a shade better than the despicable hardliners. But either such a thing does not exist or they are powerless. IRI is the hardliners. The whole Regime must go.”

Adelle Nazarian is a politics and national security reporter for Breitbart News. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.