At least 19 dead, hundreds arrested as Iran protests enter day six

Nine people were killed across Iran in overnight violence linked to a wave of anti-government protests, state broadcaster Irib reported on Tuesday, bringing the death toll since the start of the rallies to at least 19. It was not clear if the latest deaths in overnight clashes were demonstrators, police, or members of the country’s […]

Nine people were killed across Iran in overnight violence linked to a wave of anti-government protests, state broadcaster Irib reported on Tuesday, bringing the death toll since the start of the rallies to at least 19.

It was not clear if the latest deaths in overnight clashes were demonstrators, police, or members of the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

Since Thursday, masses of Iranians have taken to the streets to air their grievances – including the high cost of living, unemployment and Tehran’s Middle East policies. Uncertainty lingers about their exact demands, with some protesters targeting the country’s religious establishment.

There is no official information on the total number of arrests linked to the demonstrations, but unconfirmed reports say up to 800 people could have been detained so far.

Asgar Naserbakht, deputy governor in Tehran, told the Ilna news agency that 450 protesters have been arrested just in Tehran in the past three days.

According to Irib, one Revolutionary Guard member, who had previously been identified as a policeman, was shot dead overnight in the central city of Najafabad.

The report said the man’s death was proof that some of the demonstrators are armed.

Iranian lawmaker Hojatollah Khademi told Ilna news agency a day earlier that some of the people detained in the protests were carrying guns, munitions and explosives.

There were also unconfirmed reports that police in a dozen cities shot at protesters, possibly causing further deaths.

Ten other people were confirmed dead across the country on Monday, according to official figures, forcing President Hassan Rowhani and his government to address demonstrators’ demands at an emergency security meeting that day.

"The problems of the people are not simply economic in nature. They’re also demanding more freedoms," Rowhani said Monday, in an indirect attack on regime hardliners who oppose his attempts to push through political and cultural reforms.

Tehran has dismissed such protests in the past as a conspiracy led by Iran’s international opponents such as the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Syria, whose President Bashar al-Assad’s receives military support from Iran, supported the Iranian regime, while denouncing its political opponents on Tuesday.

"The Syrian Arab Republic expresses its strong condemnation and absolute rejection of the positions issued by the American administration and the Zionist entity and their agents regarding the current situation in Iran," the official Syrian News Agency SANA quoted a foreign ministry source as saying.

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have used the protests to bash the Iranian leadership.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry also weighed in on Tuesday, advising other countries in a statement to avoid "discourse that could provoke the developments and foreign interventions. (DPA)