EXCLUSIVE — The protests in Iran entered their 14th day on Thursday, as thousands of Iranians demonstrated against the death of a 22-year-old who died earlier this month after being detained by “morality police” for apparently not wearing a hijab correctly.
The protests, which started on Sept. 16, have spread to nearly 140 Iranian cities and 30 provinces, leaving at least 41 dead, the United Nations reported, citing state media. However, the actual number of fatalities is expected to be much higher, based on nongovernmental organizations. The protests over Mahsa Amini‘s death have also resulted in hundreds of arrests. The Washington Examiner has reached out to the U.N. for comment.
Protesters have set fire to police and government buildings, and footage of those protests, largely conducted by women, was shared exclusively with the Washington Examiner by the Organization of Iranian American Communities.
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One video showed unrest in the capital city of Tehran as protesters circled a fire and chanted, “This is a bloody year, as Saied Ali (Khamenei) will be overthrown,” according to a translation from Ramesh Sepehrrad, the head of the Organization of Iranian American Communities’s advisory board. Khamenei is the supreme leader in Iran, a position he has held since 1989.
Another video, filmed in Kermanshah, showed protesters watching as tires burned in the city’s streets. The fires were blazed to deter security forces, and the smoke can be used to diffuse tear gas, according to Sepehrrad. Iranian police have used tear gas to scatter protesters, Sepehrrad said.
A third video also showed protesters inside a metro station, chanting, “Down with the despots, be it the shah or mullahs,” according to Sepehrrad, referring to Iran’s totalitarian regime.
The protests have gone global as Iranians around the world have joined the fight against the Iranian morality police, which had arrested Amini. One of the responsibilities of the morality police is enforcing the strict dress codes for women in Iran.
While Iranian authorities say she died of a heart attack, her family alleges she was beaten to death. International experts have backed the family’s position, saying her death was almost certainly at the hands of the police. An official coroner’s report, however, has not been released so far.
Zara, a protester in Iran, said she wants the United States to end discussions of a nuclear deal with Iran and instead support calls for democracy and equality in the Islamic country.
“We want this regime gone,” Zara said in a statement obtained exclusively by the Washington Examiner. “This is a brewing revolution that is going to throw these mullahs to the dustbin of history. Stop the talks and listen to us, who want to have a secular democratic Iran. [We want] a republic with no nuclear weapons and our votes to count. We want equality of men and women, we want freedom of the press, [and] everything that our people deserve.”
Protests have erupted in Paris, France, and the U.S., with more than 3,000 people attending a protest in New York City that was held against Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to the United Nations last week. Thousands of Iranian Americans also protested in Washington, D.C., this weekend.
“As women and youth confront the repressive forces of the regime, their message to Washington is clear: The U.S. must recognize the legitimate right of the Iranian people to fight the illegitimate regime and overthrow it,” Sepehrrad told the Washington Examiner. “That is the only pathway left for the Iranian people and the only good opportunity for the international community to stand on the right side of history.”
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Iran’s regime responded to the protests by cutting off access to the internet across the country last week. However, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has activated his Starlink broadband services to counteract Iran’s response. The U.S. Treasury Department has a litany of sanctions imposed against Iran and any person or entity that does business with Tehran, but Musk was granted an exception to the sanctions Friday.
Iran’s foreign ministry said Tehran will respond to “American violations of its sovereignty,” according to CBS.
