Iranian forces fired into a crowd that was gathered to hear a speech and cut off access to power and internet
By Michael Lee
In an effort to retake control of the town that protesters recently took over, Iran has sent troops to a city with a majority of Kurds.
According to Lisa Daftari, the editor in chief of the Foreign Desk, “the regime is actively terrorizing innocent Iranians in the Kurdish city of Mahabad and has also cut off their power and internet.”
According to a report from Iran International Sunday, Daftari’s remarks follow ceremonies held Sunday for two protesters who were recently killed in the small Kurdish-majority city of Mahabad. Following those rituals, there was soon ferocious protesting and the protesters took control of the city.
Gunfire could be heard in videos taken throughout the city as the protests intensified, with the Iranian regime eventually responding by cutting power and internet access in parts of Mahabad.
Videos published on social media showed the streets of Mahabad packed with military vehicles, with authorities reportedly imposing martial law in the city. In one incident, people gathered for what was said to be a speech from the governor, but Iranian forces opened fire on the crowd, resulting in a still unknown number of casualties.
“Saturday evening, November 19, the Iranian regime appears to have imposed martial laws in the Kurdish city of Mahabad. Iran’s terrorist Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has reportedly entered Mahabad with heavy military weapons and equipment… The lives of many people are in danger,” The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan said in a statement on the situation Saturday.
The party called on human rights organizations to not remain silent over “the massacre of the Kurdish people,” arguing silence from the international community will only embolden the Iranian regime.
Iranian authorities have struggled to get a grip on protests that originated after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amin at the hands of police in September.
With those protests still raging, Daftari said the country’s Kurdish minority serves as a natural target for the regime’s violent pushback.
“It’s no coincidence that the regime is particularly fixated on killing Kurds both inside and outside its borders,” Daftari said. “During the ongoing revolution, which has now endured over two months, the regime has used every opportunity to violently crack down on peaceful protesters while the world sits idly by. The Iranian people are calling on mainstream media outlets to cover their movement and for Western leaders to support them in their endeavor.”
