Iran's Anti & Pro-Regime Demonstrations: Foreign Campaign Or People's Uprising
Tehran, Iran: For the past couple of weeks, the Islamic Republic of Iran has faced large-scale protests and demonstrations, with violence killing hundreds, according to UN human rights chief Volker Turk.
The US has warned Iran that it will interfere militarily if Tehran targets the demonstrators, as it did in the 1953 coup, destabilising and overthrowing a democratically elected government and establishing a pro-Western monarch. The interference caused the former regime’s nationalisation of oil reserves, irking the British and the US, and had created widespread resentment against the western nations, eventually leading to the 1979 historic revolution.
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Notably, the present uprising, which Iran calls another attempt by the US and Israel to destabilize the regime eyeing oil reserves, has unleashed deadly confrontations in the country. Iran has vowed that it is ready for war if Washington wants to test the military option.
Amid anti-Iran regime protests citing inflation, price hikes and worsening economic conditions due to persistent US-imposed sanctions, tens of thousands of pro-government demonstrators took to the streets in a show of support for the ruling regime.
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Iran has claimed that terrorist groups linked to Israel have infiltrated the country through Iran’s eastern borders and carried US-made weapons and explosives they planned to use in assassinations and acts of sabotage. Authorities in Iran reportedly detained what a state television report called the Israel-linked terror groups.
In addition, Iran’s top military commander, Abdolrahim Mousavi, accused the US and Israel of deploying members of the armed group ISIL (ISIS) inside the country to carry out attacks. He said that the US-Israel move came in the wake of what he described as Washington’s and Tel Aviv’s failure in June’s 12-day war against Iran.
Meanwhile, the ongoing communications shutdown imposed by the authorities has triggered right groups’ concerns on Iran’s alleged harsh crackdown on the protesters. While the US calls the protests peaceful, several footages have surfaced online, showing the demonstrators setting mosques and other government buildings ablaze.
The power abuse by the security forces to the peaceful protesters during the internet shutdown has also caused concerns over the human rights violations.
