Public outpouring continues in Iran over Mahsa’s death
SUPPORTERS of the Iranian government have turned out for rallies after nearly a week of antigovernment protests over the death of a young woman who was being held by the morality police.
A few thousand people attended a rally in the capital, Tehran where they waved Iranian flags, and similar demonstrations were held in other cities.
The government claimed the demonstrations of support were spontaneous.
The pro-government demonstrators chanted against America and Israel, according to state media, reflecting the official line that foreign countries are fomenting the latest unrest. State TV, meanwhile, suggested the death toll from this week’s unrest could be as high as 26.
Anti-government protesters and security forces have clashed in several major cities in the most severe political unrest since 2019, when rights groups say hundreds were killed amid demonstrations against a hike in state-controlled fuel prices.
Iran has also disrupted internet access and tightened restrictions on popular platforms used to organise rallies like Instagram and WhatsApp.
A state TV anchor said late on Thursday that 26 protesters and policemen had been killed since the protests erupted last Saturday after the funeral of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, without elaborating on how authorities reached that figure.
He said official statistics would be released later but during past periods of unrest authorities have not provided a full account of deaths and injuries.
Most recently, the deputy governor of Qazvin, Abolhasan Kabiri, said that a citizen and paramilitary officer had been killed in unrest that rocked two cities in the north-western province.
The crisis unfolding in Iran began as a public outpouring of anger over the the death of Ms Amini, a young woman who was arrested by the morality police in Tehran last week for allegedly wearing her Islamic headscarf too loosely.
The police said she died of a heart attack and was not mistreated, but her family has cast doubt on that account.