Canada-based activist Hamed Esmaeilion, whose daughter and wife were killed by the IRGC, has called on the international community to downgrade diplomatic ties with the Islamic Republic.
Esmaeilion made the plea in an interview with Iran International after the demonstrations against the Islamic Republic in Toronto on Saturday, when Iranian diaspora communities and human rights activists held unprecedented rallies in over 150 cities throughout the world.
Esmaeilion – the spokesman for the families of victims of Ukrainian flight PS752 shot down by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard in January 2020 – urged world countries to expel Tehran’s envoys. His wife and young daughter were among the 176 people onboard the airliner.
"This can be a start for Europeans and countries that have Iranian embassies to behave properly” in response to worldwide protests against the regime in Tehran, he said.
He added that the Iranians are showing the world that they do not want the Islamic Republic and that its officials do not represent the people of Iran.
Many people in Iran and abroad have been holding regular protests since the death of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old woman whose murder in the hands of hijab police has sparked an uprising. The level of unanimity and support from foreign leaders and officials as well as celebrities and well-known figures is unprecedented.
A hacking group has shared the alleged identities of the hijab police team that arrested Mahsa Amini, the woman whose death has sparked an uprising in Iran.
Hacker group Backdoor (3ackd0or) provided Iran International with documents about the four police officers who stopped Mahsa along with a few of his relatives in Tehran and took her to the Vozara police station in a police van. According to reports, she suffered at least one severe blow to her head that led to her death in the following hours.
Iran International has no knowledge of how they obtained this information, which cannot be independently verified.
The commander of the team was Captain Enayatollah Rafiei, 52 years old and from the town of Khodabandeh in northwestern Zanjan province.
The other male agent of the team was identified as Sergeant Ali Khoshnamvand, 27 years old and from the village of (Khoshnamvand) Khushnamvand in the Kouhdashtdistrictof Lorestan province in western Iran.
Parastou Safari is 36 years old and was born in the eastern city of Kermanshah. She is probably the female agent who deemed Mahsa’s clothing “inappropriate” and decided to take her to the station for “a short training on Islamic dress code.”
Fatemeh Ghorban-Hosseini is 27 years old, the youngest of the team that arrested Mahsa and was born and raised in the capital Tehran.
The authorities first tried to spread disinformation that Mahsa Amini had an illness which caused her death, but soon information emerged that severe blows had broken her skull and caused a coma after two hours of her arrest.
Her death almost immediately led to protests in her home province of Kordestan in Western Iran and then spread to the capital Tehran and other cities. The government resorted to brutal force against demonstrators and so far at least 150 people have died, with the largest single-day toll on September 30 in the city of Zahedan where 42 local protesters were shot.
On Thursday, September 29, Mohammad-Bagher Bakhtiar, a former commander of the Revolutionary Guard during Iran's 1980-88 war with Iraq, published an audio file quoting informed sources at the Forensic Medicine Organization as saying that Amini died because of a "blow to her skull".
Iran International had earlier published Mahsa's skull CT scan which showed bone fracture, hemorrhage and brain edema. The medical documents and dozens of exclusive images sent to Iran International by a hacktivist group vividly show a skull fracture on the right side of her head caused by a severe trauma to the skull, which corroborate earlier accounts by her family and doctors about her being hit several times on the head, proving that the Iranian police's claim that she suffered a heart attack was untrue.
An eyewitness told Iran International last week that Mahsa had told her in a detention room that an officer had hit her on the head.
Iranian diaspora communities and human rights activists have launched unprecedented rallies in over 150 cities throughout the world against the Islamic Republic.
Spearheaded by Hamed Esmaeilion, a Canada-based activist whose daughter and wife were killed by the IRGC, the Saturday worldwide demonstrations started in Australia, New Zealand and East Asia followed by European cities with cities in the American continent being the last ones to start the scheduled rallies.
Many people in Iran and abroad have been holding regular protests since the death of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old woman whose murder in the hands of hijab police has sparked an uprising. The level of unanimity and support from foreign leaders and officials as well as celebrities and well-known figures is unprecedented.
The protesters in most cities congregated outside the Islamic Republic’s embassies or consulates or main squares, chanting slogans against the Iranian regime, such as “Death to the dictator,” in reference to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and “Women, Life, Liberty,” as it is official motto of the current wave of protests.
In Australia and New Zealand, many government officials and international human rights activists attended the rallies and, in some cases, delivered speeches. At least three cities in Australia alone, namely Adelaide, Sydney, and Melbourne, were scenes of large demonstrations.
In London, a large crowd of Iranian expats gathered around Trafalgar Square to express support for Iran’s protests. "Eventhough we're far from homeland, We have your back compatriot," they chanted.
In Edinburgh, member of the Scottish parliament and the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats Alexander Geoffrey Cole-Hamilton delivered a speech in support of the ongoing protests in Iran.
The gathering in Swedish capital Stockholm and Brussels in Belgium have been very huge as the cities are home to large communities of Iranians.
During the rallies in Stockholm, Reza Younesi, whose brother Ali, a gold medalist at World Astronomy Olympiad, is jailed in Iran, called for release of all prisoners of conscience and all those unjustly detained by the Islamic Republic.
Social media platforms are exploding with video footage from today's protests in Iran as the rallies are still going on in many cities across Europe.
The protests have officially started in over a dozen cities in the Americas, most of which are in United States and Canada. Numerous speeches by prominent figures have been also scheduled.
According to different estimates, about 30 to 50 thousand people have participated in the gathering in the Canadian city of Toronto.
Niagara Falls, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States, is planned to be illuminated for 22 minutes in memory of Mahsa, who was 22 years old when she was killed, as a visual tribute to protests.
Iran's regime faced a multi-flank attack on Saturday, with student protests turning into general unrest, and businesses going on strikes in Kurdish majority provinces and southeastern Iran as well as the bazaar in capital Tehran.
Protests and strikes at around 100 universities Saturday morning turned into street demonstrations as students left the campuses and moved into streets.
Amid escalation of protests across Iran, the heads of the three branches of the Iranian government held an emergency meeting on Saturday night while the country's parliament has scheduled a special session with top security officials including Interior Minister and Police chief in attendance to discuss protests. The meeting will be held on Sunday morning behind closed doors.
Iran's regime faces a multi-flank attack today, with student protests turning into general unrest, and rallies taking place in 150 cities around the world.
Protests and strikes at around 100 universities Saturday morning turned into street demonstrations as students left the campuses and moved into streets.
Universities were scenes of strikes, as classes resumed on the first day of the week. Students entered campuses but refused to attend lectures. Instead, they began protesting. By early afternoon they began moving into streets and ordinary people joined them, in waht appears to be general unrest in the capital Tehran and other cities.
Crowds outside university gates were present to support the students since the morning but their numbers grew in the afternoon, as videos from the capital showed.
Saturday was the first day in the two-week-old antigovernment movement when large numbers of protesters came into the streets during the day, instead of the usual evening and night hours. This shows a higher degree of defiance and self-confidence by the people.
A general strike also commenced in Kurdish towns and cities in the west of the country and more street demonstrations are expected throughout the day and especially in the evening.
The killing of dozens of Sunni Baluchi protesters in Zahedan, southeast Iran on Friday, shocked the country and was the first mass killing in one location since the protests began two weeks ago. It intensified demonstrations Friday evening that began on September 16, when Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman died in hospital after receiving fatal wounds in the custody of Iran's hijab police.
A social media account has claimed 42 people were killed on Friday and has published their names.
Rallies in support of Iranian protesters already took place in Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Jakarta on Saturday and many large gatherings are taking place in Europe and later in North America.
Here we will provide live coverage of street protests, by posting news and tweets as we receive them.
Follow our website for the latest on Iran protests.
This live coverage ended at 01:00 Iran time on Sunday.
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Protest in Shahrekord Saturday night, a city southwest of Esfahan.
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People in Arak, central Iran were in the streets Saturday night chanting, "This year is year when Seyyed Ali will bo done," referring to Iran's ruler Ali Khamenei.
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Protesters in Rasht, a major city innorthern Iran chant, "Death to the dictator".
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Reports on social media say that security forces raided the dormitories of Tabriz University and arrested around 30 students. Regular police has no right to raid a university, so it is believed IRGC forces might have been involved dressed as police forces.
Another video showing the noise and people in the streets in Tehran, with protesters chanting "Death to the dictator."
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Social media reports from Tehran say protesters are everywhere in the sprawling city of 8 million, but the evening news from state TV said the city is calm and quiet. Karaj, 20 miles west of Tehran is also full of protesters.
There are also protests in Iran's second largest city Mashhad Saturday evening., which is an important religios center. Gunshots were also reported in Mashhad, which is controlled by a hard-liner cleric who is the father-in-law of President Ebrahin Raisi.
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Protests in Kermanshah, western Iran Saturday evening. News and videos from provoincial cities are expected later as internet disruptions by the government make it hard for people to post on social media.
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Protesters in Tehran pulled down two street signs on Saturday; Palestine St. and Islamic Republic St.
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This video obtained by Iran International shows an afternnon protest in a Tehran district where people are shouting, "Death to the dictator".
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Businesses at Tehran's old commercial street, Lalehzar, closed their doors and joined the protests at 17:00. They are shouting, "This year, is the year of blood, Seyyed Ali will be gone", referring to Ali Khamenei.
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A tactic women use to attract attention to the protests is taking off their headscarves and walking among cars in the city traffic. This is in Tehran.
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Saturday - A daytime protest in Tabriz, northwestern Iran.
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Saturday afternoon in Iran. Crowds march in streets and chant slogans against the Islamic Republic. This the first major daytime protests in the capital.
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A crowd of mainly women protesting at a subway station in central Tehran, chanting among other slogans, "Death to the dictator".
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Thousands of protesters are in the streets of the capital Tehran. In this video you can see a march in Keshavarz street in the early afternoon.
A video showing protests in Tehran's Palestine Street, near the headquarters and home of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
A second video from ongoing protests in Tehran.
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Saturday midday in the University of Esfahan.
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Iranian dissident figure Mir-Hossein Mousavi has expressed support for the current protests across Iran, calling on the military to stand behind the nation.
Mousavi, who has been under house arrest since February 2011 as one of the leaders of the protests in 2009-2011 known as the Green Movement, issued a statement Saturday addressing the military forces, "I hope you will be able to stand on the side of the truth, on the side of the nation."
"No one has the right to stand in front of the nation as a blind agent," he said.
Mousavi (Musavi), 81, was Iran’s Prime Minister from 1981 to 1989. He was a candidate in the disputed presidential election in 2009 and challenged the results leading large protests for months before he was arrested and put under house arrest without a trial. His wife Zahra Rahnavard and another candidate Mehdi Karroubi suffered a similar fate as all three were accused of “sedition” against the regime. He was put under house arrest after he and his wife urged their supporters to organize demonstrations in support of uprisings in the Arab world in February 2011.
His statement has been met with conflicting responses from Iranians -- who have been holding daily demonstrations across the country since mid-September, when 22-year-old Mahsa Amini was killed in custody of hijab police – as the new wave of protests is essentially different from earlier ones.
The current protests are against the entire Islamic regime, which was not the case for Mousavi’s Green Movement in which people were seeking reforms.
The Islamic Republic found itself under a multi-flank attack Saturday, with university students across Iran protesting, and rallies taking place around the world.
Protests and strikes at around 100 universities began Saturday morning as planned. Universities in Tehran, Esfahan, Mashhad and other cities were scenes of strikes. As classes resumed on the first day of the week, students entered campuses but refused to attend lectures. Instead, they began protesting.
Students have called for a general strike and dozens of professors have supported their call and demanded the release of those students who have been arrested so far.
There were also crowds outside university gates in the streets.
A general strike also commenced in Kurdish towns and cities in the west of the country and more street demonstrations are expected throughout the day and especially in the evening.
The killing of at least 19 Sunni Baluchi protesters in Zahedan, southeast Iran on Friday, shocked the country and was the first mass killing in one location since the protests began two weeks ago. It intensified demonstrations Friday evening that began on September 16, when Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman died in hospital after receiving fatal wounds in the custody of Iran's hijab police.
A social media account has claimed 42 people were killed on Friday and has published their names.
Rallies in support of Iranian protesters already took place in Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Jakarta on Saturday and many large gatherings are expected in Europe and later in North America.
Here we will provide live coverage of university protests, and later will report on street protests as they happen, possibly in a new thread.
We ended this live coverage at 15:30 local time and began a live coverage of street protests, after university students poured into the streets and other people joined them.
Follow our website for the latest on Iran protests.
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Pro-regime Basij members attacked protesting students in tehran university. In this video, students rush toward the attackers and shout "Shame on you.
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People gathered in the streets arounf the Azad University in Karaj, west of Tehran to support student who are protesting on campus.
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Students and ordinary protesting in Gohar Dasht, 20 miles west of Tehran in support of university demonstrations and strikes on Saturday.
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University of Shiraz students protesting on Saturday, joining dozens of other campuses around the country.
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In another university in Esfahan Province students chant "This is the year of blood, Seyyed Ali will be done", referring to Ali Khamenei.
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An unconfirmed report at 11:30 local time says security forces firing guns outside the University of Esfahan and they closed the entrance to the city's subway. The video below shows the protest outside the university before security forces began firing.
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Large protest march in the University of Mashhad on saturday. Mashhad is the second largest city in Iran and an important religious center.
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Hundreds of student gathered on the campus of Tehran University Saturday morning, announcing a strike and demanding the release of political prisoners.
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Student protesting in the Science and Industry University of Tehran.
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Protest in the University of Esfahan Saturday morning.
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A large protest in the University of Yazd, a relatively conservative city in central Iran.
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Hundreds of students protesting in the University of Zanjan on Saturday.
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