Tehran. Internet has been shut down in Iran amid continuous protests. Apart from this, international telephone services have also been banned. Despite this, the protest of the protesters is not stopping. In the video shared by the protesters, it can be seen that debris is scattered on the streets of the capital Tehran and other areas and the protesters are lighting bonfires and shouting slogans against the Iranian government. Amidst all this the death toll has increased to 62.
Iranian state media on Friday broke its silence on the protests, alleging that US and Israeli terrorist agents started the fires and incited violence. He also said there were some casualties, but did not elaborate. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, indicated in a brief address broadcast on state television that authorities would take tough action against protesters, while people chanted “Down with America!” Were raising slogans.
Referring to US President Donald Trump, Khamenei said that the protesters are destroying their own streets to please the president of another country. The protests that started on December 28 last year have steadily gained momentum. The protests are also the first test of whether the Iranian public can be swayed by Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, whose gravely ill father fled Iran just before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Pahlavi had called for protests on Thursday night and he also called for demonstrations on Friday at 8 pm. Holly Dagres, senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the turning point of the protests was Pahlavi’s call for Iranians to take to the streets at 8 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. He said it was clear from social media posts that Iranians took the call seriously and protested to overthrow the Islamic Republic.
