Video: Iran Protests Continue Amid Mounting Death Toll
RFE/RL's Radio Farda has currently verified the deaths of 20 demonstrators who have died during Iran's ongoing protests. Despite the violent crackdown, crowds gathered late on January 6 in Abdanan, in Iran's western Ilam Province, and in several other cities as protests continue for an 11th day.
Video Footage Shows Protesters Massing In Bojnourd, North Khorasan
Videos sent to RFE/RL's Radio Farda show large-scale protests being held in the city of Bojnourd, the capital of Iran's North Khorasan Province.
Two different videos of the January 7 protests in Bojnourd show large numbers of protesters chanting anti-government slogans.
Interview: Could There Be A 'Venezuela-Like Situation' In Iran?
RFE/RL's Radio Farda spoke to Michael Rubin, a former Pentagon official who is a senior fellow at the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute, about the significance of the current protests in Iran and whether the United States might intervene militarily.
"What I worry about is a Venezuela-like situation where Trump will try to hand off power, transfer power to someone like [former moderate Iranian President Hassan] Rohani, who has been putting his finger into the wind as I interpret it, as someone who [Trump] believes could handle a transition but might not want an end to the Islamic republic," Rubin says.
"It goes back to this old debate which we've had in the United States about whether the reformists are truly reformist."
To read the interview, click here.
Foreign Intervention Not Welcome, Say Activists Within Iran
What initially started as protests over economic grievances has snowballed into the biggest threat to Iran's clerical rulers in several years.
Prominent activists inside the country who spoke to RFE/RL's Radio Farda said the nationwide demonstrations suggest many Iranians want the clerical establishment gone.
But they added that change must come from within, not as the result of foreign intervention. The United States has threatened to intervene militarily if the authorities continue their brutal crackdown on demonstrators.
"What we're seeing is a sign that people have reached a shared understanding," said Mehdi Mahmoudian, a Tehran-based political activist and human rights defender. "This is no longer just teachers protesting or a single social group. This time, the voiceless have formed an alliance."
To read the rest of the story, click here.
Police Officer Killed in Iranshahr
Iranian media have reported that a member of the police force has been killed in Iranshahr in southeastern Iran.
According to a statement by the information center of the police directorate in Sistan-Baluchistan Province, an economically deprived predominantly Sunni and ethnically Baluch region, the officer was killed early this morning after being shot by “unknown armed individuals.”
News agencies have identified the officer as Mahmud Haqiqat, reporting that members of Jaish al-Adl, a Sunni militant group, fired on his vehicle.
No further details were released regarding the circumstances of the killing, but the Popular Resistance Front (which includes Jaish al-Adl and other Baluch paramilitary groups), later claimed the attack on its social media accounts.
Here's some verified UGC video of demonstrations that have been happening today in Torbat-e Heydariyeh in the northeastern Razavi Khorasan Province:
Here's some video footage (verified by RFE/RL) of events at Tehran's Grand Bazaar yesterday:
Social Media Praise For Protesters' 'Rice Shower' In Abdanan
Protests last night in Abdanan have attracted widespread attention on social media -- not only because of the number of participants, but also because of how residents handled sacks of rice that fell into their hands.
Images and videos shared on Persian-language social media show protesters in the western city scattering the contents of rice sacks into the air in the streets as an act of protest after storming a store affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
Other widely shared images show demonstrators standing on streets literally covered with rice.
The act has been dubbed the “rice scattering” or “rice rain” on social media. Many users praised the residents of Abdanan -- one of Iran’s most deprived places -- for not taking the rice home. Commentators described the gesture as a symbol of “dignity” and framed the protest as “the revolt of those hungry for freedom, not the poor.”
Leading Actors Voice Support For Protesters
Pantea Bahram, a well-known Iranian actress who ran foul of the authorities after removing her hijab in support of protesters during the Women, Life, Freedom demonstrations two years ago has posted a message of support for the protesters on her Instagram account.
"Because of you, I have been waiting for the light, in my homeland," she said.
As a result of her head scarf protest in 2023, Bahram was banned from any professional activity and says she is not even allowed to teach.
Another prominent actress, Katayoun Riahi has also posted a message of support for demonstrators, saying 'Brave women, brave men, the light is near."
You can read more about both women's brush with Iranian authorities here.
More than 70 Iranian screenwriters have also voiced their support for the protests, emphasizing that their role is to write about the realities of life and that they cannot “remain silent in the face of the hardships that are being imposed on people’s lives more violently every day.”
They warned that “a violent response to these protests is not the solution and will only deepen the problem,” adding, “Security is not achieved by silencing voices, and stability is not achieved by denying reality.”
Meanwhile, Iran's former crown prince, Reza Pahlavi has made a direct appeal to Iran's security forces, saying that they are facing a 'historic choice.' He called on them "to use your weapons not to fire on the people, but to protect them." You can see his full statement with subtitles here: