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posted by Fnord666 on Sunday December 31 2017, @01:32PM   Printer-friendly
from the human-rights++ dept.

Iranian cities hit by anti-government protests

Anti-government demonstrations that began in Iran on Thursday have now spread to several major cities. Large numbers reportedly turned out in Rasht, in the north, and Kermanshah, in the west, with smaller protests in Isfahan, Hamadan and elsewhere. The protests began against rising prices but have spiralled into a general outcry against clerical rule and government policies.

A small number of people have been arrested in Tehran, the capital. They were among a group of 50 people who gathered in a city square, Tehran's deputy governor-general for security affairs told the Iranian Labour News Agency.

The US State Department condemned the arrests and urged "all nations to publicly support the Iranian people and their demands for basic rights and an end to corruption".

Also at Bloomberg and Reuters.

Update: Street protests hit Iran for third straight day as pro-government rallies held
Iran Confronts 3rd Day of Protests, With Calls for Khamenei to Quit

Update 2: Iran blocks Instagram, Telegram apps as government protesters will 'pay the price' for unrest (archive)
CEO says Iran blocking (Telegram) messaging app after issuing warning to protesters
Iran protests: 'Iron fist' threatened if unrest continues


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  • (Score: 0, Troll) by khallow on Monday January 01 2018, @03:35AM (2 children)

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Monday January 01 2018, @03:35AM (#616332) Journal

    Yeah, here's the thing. If Iran "condemned" the arrest of rioters in the US, and encouraged "all nations" to support "the American people and their demands for basic rights and an end to corruption" they would be denying the role of the current government in police work, and encouraging revolution (which is what it would take, post-patriot-act, to restore basic rights).

    Sounds like you would approve of that, right?

    And that's exactly what the US is doing here. I am not fooled. Neither is the world, I hope.

    So the US is doing something you would otherwise approve of? Once again, imagined motive is more important than what actually is done.

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  • (Score: 2) by requerdanos on Monday January 01 2018, @04:39AM (1 child)

    by requerdanos (5997) Subscriber Badge on Monday January 01 2018, @04:39AM (#616347) Journal

    So the US is doing something you would otherwise approve of?

    Yeah, I guess except for the hypocritical overtones, they're doing something I would otherwise approve of.

    Thanks for making me think.

    • (Score: 1) by khallow on Monday January 01 2018, @04:54AM

      by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Monday January 01 2018, @04:54AM (#616354) Journal
      Hypocrisy is the natural state of nations and other large masses of people. It's rare that they do things for altruistic motives. Thus, I think it's more effective to focus on good behavior than good intentions.