Overview of the Protests
Demonstrations have been reported in dozens of locations across Iran, including Tehran, Isfahan, Lorestan, Mazandaran, Khuzestan, Hamadan, and Fars. Protesters have been chanting slogans directly targeting the ruling system and the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. This wave of protests has seen a significant shift, with pro-monarchy slogans dominating the chants for the first time in five decades.
Violence and Casualties
Security forces have used live fire in several cities, including Nurabad in Lorestan and Hamadan in western Iran. Videos have shown officers shooting at demonstrators who remained in the streets despite the crackdown. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has documented the deaths of at least seven protesters, mostly killed on Thursday. Iran International has spoken with the families of three victims, including 28-year-old barber Shayan Asadollahi, who was killed in Lorestan, and Dariush Ansari Bakhtiarvand and Amir-Hessam Khodayarifard, who were killed in Fooladshahr and Kuhdasht, respectively.
Anti-Government Sentiment
The unrest has taken on a distinctly anti-government tone, with protesters chanting "Death to the entire system" and "Long live the Shah (King)". Pro-monarchy graffiti and slogans have appeared in Esfahan and Sistan and Baluchestan. In Bandar Abbas, protesters chanted "Death to the entire system" and "Long live the Shah", while in Qom, a core stronghold of Shiite clerics and the Islamic Republic, protesters chanted pro-monarchy slogans, signaling a major symbolic breach in a city long seen as politically untouchable.
Calls for Freedom and Support
In the restive southeast, a group of Baluch prisoners urged residents of Sistan and Baluchestan to join the "wave of freedom" and support demonstrations across the country. They called on people to reclaim streets they said "belong to the people, not dictators", and to make chants such as "Death to the dictator" and "Freedom, justice, Iranian republic" echo "like thunder across Iran". The Paris-based Narges Foundation issued a statement declaring that "silence is not an option" as streets once again see live fire, tear gas, beatings, and mass arrests, and urged solidarity with families of those killed, detainees held incommunicado, and the wounded denied safe treatment.
Warnings and Messages of Caution
Former senior lawmaker Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh warned that "all the ideologies of the world are not worth the tears of one mother" and urged Iranians to ensure their hands "do not get stained with the blood of even one Iranian". This message of caution comes as the situation on the ground continues to escalate, with evening and nighttime demonstrations reported in multiple cities, including Bandar Abbas, Azna, Hamedan, Qom, Qazvin, and Babol.
Conclusion
The current wave of protests in Iran has seen a significant shift in tone, with pro-monarchy slogans dominating the chants and a distinctly anti-government sentiment. The use of live fire by security forces has resulted in casualties, and the international community is calling for solidarity with the families of those killed and detained. As the situation continues to escalate, it remains to be seen how the Iranian government will respond to the growing unrest and demands for freedom and justice.
