Protests re-erupt in Iran as mullahs tighten their grip

Noura Bendari

Protests have returned to Iranian streets at the beginning of this month, after calming down a little since the poisoning of several school pupils.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Iranian government officials pledged to bring those responsible for the poisoning incident to account.

On April 9, Iranian media revealed that at least 60 schoolgirls were poisoned at a Girls’ School in south-western the province of Khuzestan.

On April 13, protesters from Zahedan in south-eastern Iran went out to speak against the regime’s failure to manage the country’s economic and political affairs.

Meanwhile, activists announced on April 15, their rejection of the way the regime deals with those who are not committed to wearing the Islamic head cover (hijab).

The student unions said their members would protest against the compulsory hijab, after security forces deployed at universities to urge students to implement a project called “oral reminder” aimed at observing the rules of wearing the hijab.

Since September 2022, Iran has witnessed a series of protests over the murder of a young Kurdish woman in her twenties by the morality police under the pretext of not wearing a hijab.

The incident resulted in criticism, as several organizations and countries condemned the regime’s policy in dealing with women and suppressing them.

Messed-up system

Iranian affairs specialist Mustafa al-Naimi said the revolution against corruption and murder continues and would not be interrupted, despite the Iranian regime’s repeated futile attempts to terrorize unarmed civilians and protesters in schools, universities and small economic and commercial sectors.

“This also happened despite the use of toxic gases that affected more than 1,300 teachers and students in 505 schools,” he told The Reference.

Al-Naimi pointed out that the slogans of ‘death to the dictator’ and ‘death to Khamenei’ are still rising at a higher pace.

“They are breaking the barrier of fear among all ethnic and racial components who categorically reject the survival of the regime at all costs,” he said.