Protests break out across Iran over fuel price hike
At least one person was killed in the Iranian city of Sirjan during protests that erupted after President Hassan Rouhani’s government imposed gasoline rationing and price hikes of at least 50%, Iranian ISNA news agency reported on Saturday.
Iranian mobile networks appeared to go off-line on Saturday night amid rising protests. Videos from across the country showed security forces firing tear gas, clashing protesters as well as images of Iranian regime figures being burned and people angry that price hikes were allegedly being used to fund foreign wars. Protests spread to least 40 cities and towns on Saturday, Iranian media said.
The government announced on Friday that the price of a liter of regular gasoline would increase to 15,000 rials (13¢) from 10,000 rials and the monthly ration for each private car was set at 60 liters. Additional purchases would cost 30,000 rials per liter.
The measure by a top decision-making economic council sparked angered across the country. Iranians have faced economic pressure since last year when President Donald Trump withdrew the US from the Iran nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on the country.
“One person was killed in Sirjan but... we are investigating whether he was killed by the security forces who were trying to bring back calm to the city,” ISNA quoted local official Mohammad Mahmoudabadi as saying.
He said several people were wounded when masked armed men infiltrated the protests in Sirjan and clashed with security forces.
“Security forces were not allowed to shoot at people... The situation is calm in the city now,” Mahmoudabadi said.
State news agency IRNA said during the “severe” protests in Sirjan that “people attacked a fuel storage warehouse and tried to set fire to it.”
Washington’s policy of applying “maximum pressure” on Iran has severely impacted the country’s oil revenues, sent its economy into recession and devalued its national currency.
Iranians mainly rely on cars or taxis for access around cities and towns. The government said the cost of using taxis and public transport will not change, according to media reports.
Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh told state TV on Friday that the measure was aimed at “reining in soaring consumption, exporting gasoline and helping needy families.”
The move is expected to raise around $2.55 billion a year for additional subsidies for 18 million families, or about 60 million Iranians on lower incomes, the government said. Many Iranians are frustrated because of the sharp devaluation of Iran’s rial currency and spikes in the prices of bread, rice and other staples since the reimposition of US sanctions on Iran.
The protests come after massive protests across the border in Iraq, where more than 300 have been killed by security forces. They also come amid protests in Lebanon. Iran has major allies in southern Iraq and Lebanon, and Iranians have learned about the protests abroad through their own media, potentially fueling local decisions to rise up.
Protests appeared to begin in Iran’s southwest province of Ahwaz that borders Iraq. Because Ahwaz shares the border, where there are ongoing protests and because some locals speak Arabic, it is likely the protests were partly spillover. However, they targeted slightly different issues, as the protest centered on anger at the Iranian regime and fuel prices. Video showed some important parts of the city engulfed in smoke and fire from various street protests. Gas stations were one target.
On Saturday, protests spread to Tabriz in the north as snow blanketed Tehran. They had also spread to Mashhad, Bandar Abbas on the coast, Khorramshahr, Abadan, Shiraz and Sirjan. Some protesters have targeted President Hassan Rouhani, who has been in power since 2013. Both Rouhani and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei have slammed Israel over the weekend, seeking to distract from the chaos at home. Rouhani has said that the original plan was to increase fuel costs five-fold due to austerity measures at home, and has also called out corruption recently. He appears to be faltering and unable to control events, fighting off challenges by various rivals.
Videos, which are difficult to confirm, showed protesters burning banks across the country. In Tehran, a Maskan bank branch was allegedly burned. A video from Shiraz, 320 km. to the east of the burning bank, showed hundreds of men rioting. Protesters have shouted against Iranian involvement abroad, even condemning the regime for involvement in supporting Islamic Jihad in Gaza
over the recent flare-up with Israel.
Some protesters argued that the regime has increased prices to fund Hezbollah in Lebanon and other foreign adventures. They also shouted “down with the dictator” in Tehran.
In Andishe, south of the Caspian Sea, people took over a Basij militia headquarters. In the past, the Basij has been responsible for suppressing protests. In some areas, security forces retreated in the face of protests. In Eslamshahr, a 20-minute drive south, people protested against wasting money on “Palestine.” In Chahardangeh, across the city of Tehran to the east of Eslamshahr, people came out in the rain. They did the same in Shahriar, also near Tehran. In Urmia, the Kurdish region people chanted “the enemy is here,” a reference to the regime. Posters of the supreme leader were torn down in other cities. In Isfahan, a protester was reported killed.
Iran’s regime has called the protesters vandals. Large spontaneous protests like this have taken place across Iran over the last decade, including in December 2017, when widespread protests broke out. The regime has generally weathered the storm through using force in some places and letting them sputter out in others. The numerous protests near Tehran may be due to the access to media networks, while the protests in Ahvaz and the Kurdish region may be fueled by other discontent in minority and neglected regions. •