‘Beginning of the end’: Iran activists call for new protests

Paris (AFP)- Oct 14th 2022

Iranian activists called for fresh nationwide protests over the death of Mahsa Amini, as the movement entered a fifth week on Friday despite a crackdown that has killed dozens.

Outrage over the 22-year-old’s death on September 16, three days after she was arrested by Iran’s notorious morality police, has fuelled the biggest wave of street protests and violence seen in the country for years.

Young women have been on the front line of the protests, shouting anti-government slogans, removing their headscarves and facing off with security forces in the streets.

At least 108 people have been killed in the Amini protests, and at least another 93 have died in separate clashes in Zahedan, a city in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan, says the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights.

The protests have continued despite what Amnesty International called an “unrelenting brutal crackdown” that included an “all-out attack on child protesters” — leading to the deaths of at least 23 minors.

There were fewer reports of people taking to the streets over Amini’s death on Friday, but hundreds of men were seen protesting after weekly prayers in Zahedan, in online videos verified by AFP.

Despite blocked access to internet services and platforms like Instagram and WhatsApp, activists issued an online appeal for a huge turnout on Saturday for Amini protests under the catchcry “The beginning of the end!”.

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