Security officers confronted the protesters with mass arrests, bullets and batons. Amnesty International said it had confirmed at least 52 deaths, but the number was likely much higher, with hundreds injured and thousands arrested.
President Ebrahim Raisi, a radical cleric, addressed the unrest on television late Wednesday, accusing protesters of taking advantage of Amini’s death to destabilize Iran..
“We must separate legitimate protests from riots,” he said, adding that “the red line of the Islamic Republic is the lives of its people and their property”.
At least 19 journalists have been detained across the country since the protests began, according to Reporters Without Borders. Faezeh Hashemi, the daughter of former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and one of Iran’s most famous reformist politicians, was arrested at a protest in Tehran this week, according to state media.
Sanam Vakil, deputy director of the Middle East program at Chatham House, a British think tank, says the government’s tactics are clear. “The immediate goal is to get people off the streets and back into their homes, which optically and symbolically shows that the state is reasserting this authority,” she said.
“But without any meaningful concessions or access to protesters, grievances will continue to grow,” she added, noting that future protests will inevitable.
Since his election last year, Mr. Raisi has doubled down on enforcement of the head covering law, unlike his predecessor, Hassan Rouhani, a moderate who has reduced the moral police presence.
