Iranian people’s message to the Islamic Regime: “Enough is enough! Death to the Dictator”

By Editors of The Free Iran Herald

Now bringing you daily updates on the events unfolding in Iran

Tuesday marked the fifth day of continuous mass protests in almost every large city within Iran.

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This is not the first time that Iran has seen waves of nationwide anti-regime demonstrations, 1999, 2003, and 2009 are just a few examples of prior uprisings. What is happening now, however, which is actually a continuation of the simmering unrest that commenced with the protests of December, 2017, and never was completely suppressed — When seen in the economic and political contexts of the straits the regime has found itself in, is leading observers to question whether the Khomeiniist dictatorship is on the brink of collapse.

The Setting and The Trigger

The initial spark bringing Iranians out into the streets on Friday was the regime’s announcement that gasoline prices would be raised. In Iran, the price of gas has been kept artificially low for a long time via state subsidies. However, as the regime is running short on cash due to the US sanctions blocking their oil exports, it announced, suddenly, that it would be raising gasoline prices by 50%, to 49 cents a gallon for the first 15 gallons used per month, and then 98 cents for each additional gallon consumed. While these prices may seem low by international standards, it must be recalled that Iran is a very low-income country – between half to 80% of Iranians live below the international poverty line – so every additional cent is of concern to a people who are already suffering from malnourishment due to rising food prices as a result of hyperinflation.

The examples of neighboring Iraq and Lebanon, where spontaneous mass movements have erupted against the Islamic regime’s domination of those countries, have also inspired the Iranian people despite the regime’s attempts to prevent news of the protests there from being broadcast inside Iran.

Thus, almost immediately upon the announcement of the gasoline price increase on Friday morning, November 15th, crowds began assembling to demonstrate against it in multiple cities at the same time across the entire country. 18 big cities saw massive demonstrations, while smaller were reported in at least 50 smaller municipalities. The biggest scenes of protest were in Ahvaz, Abadan, Mashad, Shiraz, Sirjan, Esfahan, Bandar Abbas, Khorramshahr, Karaj and, surprisingly, the Islamic clergy’s stronghold of Qom.

The slogans chanted by the demonstrators went beyond the daily issue of gasoline and attacked the Islamic regime itself, its wasting money on foreign aggression and terrorism instead of serving the Iranian people. In various places, the crowds called for the return of the Pahlavi monarchy, the government overthrown by the clergy in 1979.

#BREAKING: #Iran‘s Islamic Regime raised fuel price to compensate its lack of oil income. It resulted quick raise in prices of all goods in 24 hours. Since morning, thousands of Iranians have come to streets of their cities to protest against the regime authorities. #IranProtest pic.twitter.com/fi4K7UEbvq — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 15, 2019

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Chanting “we don’t accept objection, we take back our rights,” people in #Iran‘s Behbahan took the streets and went on strike against raising fuel price by %300 by the government. pic.twitter.com/0HFugo54uj — AVA TODAY (@ava_today) November 15, 2019

Karaj, west of Tehran, #Iran

Protests begin in diferent cities across the country as the mullahs’ regime increases gasoline prices by 50 percent.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/tlpd4aff8L — ▁▂▃▄▅▆█100% (@BehradDashti) November 15, 2019

Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, for his part immediately responded with a Twitter message of support.

The regime reacted with force, sending the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and its Basij militia to supress the demonstrations. The people held their ground, and the clashes developed between them and the security forces, who began shooting at them. The first reported casualty was Javad Nazari, who was killed by the IRGC in Sirjan, during the evening.

The regime also began to impose blocks on the Internet, a standard tactic employed whenever protests occur to stop images and video from being shared on social media.

Confirmed: #Iran is now in the midst of a near-total national internet shutdown; realtime network data show connectivity at 7% of ordinary levels after twelve hours of progressive network disconnections as public protests continue #IranProtests https://t.co/1Al0DT8an1 pic.twitter.com/u6bVsfvOOm — NetBlocks.org (@netblocks) November 16, 2019

Saturday, November 16th

The protests continued after yesterday’s violence, growing larger and more intense. A big crowd in Tehran’s bazaar assembled, closed down the shops and began burning photos of supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Bazaars in Shiraz, Esfahan and Yazd also shut down. In Bushehr province along the shore of the Persian Gulf, the entire staff of the provincial government office went on strike in solidarity with the demonstrations.

#IranProtests:

an overview of cities across Iran that protests are confirmed to be taking place, according to the pictures and videos that were sent to BBC Persian. pic.twitter.com/7kJ5uCEYgq — Hadi Nili (@HadiNili) November 16, 2019

A recent footage from Shiraz, Iran. People are demonstrating against the regime. They’re fed up with 40 years of tyranny, economic mismanagement and isolation. Regime forces mercilessly firing on protesters.#IranProtests continue all over the country. pic.twitter.com/Aw0fwmD9Bt — Masih Alinejad ️ (@AlinejadMasih) November 16, 2019

#BREAKING: Watch brave people of #Yazd resisting suppression. They threw stones at Special Pasdaran Unit of Police which was deployed to suppress their protest. Watch how the security forces are running away. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/1biE05dHCG — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 16, 2019

At least 3 have been killed in Security Forces Crackdown in a city.

There is 10yrs old boy among the injured.#IranProtests#ایران_ینتفضpic.twitter.com/X513qnYESz — Maryam shariatmadari (@Maryamshariatm) November 16, 2019

Violent mobs have begun to burn down banks and government buildings. The regime is claiming that protesters are responsible, but Iranians on the ground are saying that IRGC provocateurs are committing the arsons as a means of attempting to turn popular opinion against demonstrators.

Meanwhile, the death toll is quickly rising. 13 people were killed today as eyewitnesses are stating that the security forces are aiming specifically at protesters’ chests. An IRGC Colonel, Iraj Javaheri, was killed in Kermanshah during clashes with crowds. The people in that city have begun erecting barricades in self-defense using trucks and buses to block roads.

#BREAKING: Security forces of #Iran‘s Islamic Regime opened fire at unarmed protesters in #TehranPars east of #Tehran. #Basij militia forces & Snipers of Police Special Unit can be heard in this video shooting at protesters.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/ON75TgwfhO — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 16, 2019

In Andimeshk, in Khuzestan, protesters have also blocked roads and the railroad leading to Ahvaz.

Barricades are also being erected in Tehran and Tabriz.

#BREAKING: People of #Narmak in east of #Tehran have closed the 30 metri crossroad and are protesting #Iran‘s Islamic Regime. They are chanting “Death to Dictator”, “Death to #Khamenei” and “#RezaShah God Bless Your Soul”.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/VkJbwuVCjZ — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 16, 2019

#BREAKING: Protesters detected a bus carrying #Basij militia members. They quickly threw stones at the bus and forced Basij militiamen to flee. Then the bus was set on fire in #Aboozar street of #Tehran. #IranProtests against #Iran‘s Islamic Regime. pic.twitter.com/kcD5BAtIvJ — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 16, 2019

Another angle of hand to hand fighting between protesters and security forces in #Tabriz NW Iran#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/7oNtvz2pu1 — Potkin Azarmehr (@potkazar) November 16, 2019

The regime ordered all schools and colleges in 13 cities to be closed indefinitely to prevent students, always vocally anti-regime, from creating more scenes of protest. Regime-controlled media were also ordered to downplay the scale of the demonstrations in their coverage of them and to report that all was only the action of a few “criminals.”

American government officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have begun issuing statements of support for the Iranian people.

Why #IranProtests matter: the only way we prevent Iran from supporting terrorism and obtaining nuclear weapons is a change in government, and that can only happen if the Iranian people stand up. We must amplify their message so this tyrannical regime can be stopped. https://t.co/1z3UHr7Fm2 — Rep. Will Hurd (@HurdOnTheHill) November 16, 2019

As I said to the people of Iran almost a year and a half ago: The United States is with you. https://t.co/D972wPyLxm — Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) November 16, 2019

The U.S. stands with the long-suffering Iranian people as they protest the latest injustice by the corrupt regime in power. We condemn the attempted shutdown of the internet. Let them speak! #IranProtests https://t.co/jmNvFTueBl — Morgan Ortagus (@statedeptspox) November 16, 2019

Sunday, November 17th

The protests have now spread to 100 cities (out of 1,080 in Iran). 1,000 people have already been arrested.

#BREAKING: People of #Qom, the center of Shiite clergy are also protesting against the #Iran‘s Islamic Regime & the Ayatollahs. They are chanting “No #Gaza, No #Lebanon, My life is only for #Iran” in protest over use of #Iran‘s oil money for funding terrorism abroad by the regime pic.twitter.com/AvYae7reEh — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 16, 2019

The Tehran Grand Bazaar remains a scene of ongoing demonstrations.

This video apparently shows Tehran bazaar today. Supreme leader Khamenei has ordered the security forces to end the protests and said the government would not backtrack from the petrol price hikes. He called those burning banks اشرار could be translated as villains or thugs pic.twitter.com/56LOMjKcMr — Fazel Hawramy (@FazelHawramy) November 17, 2019

Barricades went up Mahshar, amidst clashes with the IRGC.

To stop IRGC and millitia force’s vehicles, a group of Iranian protesters in Tehran (Niayesh Highway) are displacing guardrails and blocking the streets. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/cmRfAnPvH7 — بهرام گور (@Bahram_Gooor) November 17, 2019

2,000 IRGC troops attacked the city of Shahryar, near Tehran today after reports that protesters had seized control of government offices there. The death toll is now 37.

More deaths were reported today in Bebehan, and Eslamshahr. Shiraz was also a scene of heavy fighting while Bam has been completely closed off under martial law. Ahvaz also has been placed under military rule. In Karaj, however, IRGC soldiers were forced to withdraw after being outnumbered by the crowds during the fighting. According to some reports, IRGC personnel in Bushehr, Jahrom, and Zanjan have defected and joined the protesters.

Due to the bank and supermarket burnings, which protesters insist isn’t being committed by them, Khamenei and other officials have started referring to demonstrators as “thugs.” Protesters believe the regime forces are also targeting banks because their WiFi networks were left out of the nationwide Internet stoppage and thus have served as access points for social media uploads.

Special Pasdaran Police Units or Brigades of #Iran‘s Islamic Regime Police is responsible for act of vandalism across the country within past 5 days. They burned banks, broke windows of metro stations & burned cars of people to falsely hold protesters accountable.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/JIZhMEBvDE — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 19, 2019

In the southern Iranian city of Bushehr, the Revolutionary Guards and Basij Security forces violently attacked protesters. In the township of Borazjan (Bushehr suburb) protesters chant: “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid; we stand together”

Meanwhile, 60 members of the 290-strong Islamic Parliament (Majles) have called for regime president Hassan Rouhani to be impeached.

Brian Hook, the US State Department official responsible for Iranian affairs said today that the protests are proof that the sanctions are working by cutting off the regime’s funding.

Monday, November 18th

Fighting is increasingly growing harsher as crowds challenge the IRGC with strength of masses, despite not having much access to weaponry. Reserve Basij units have been called to duty. Roadblocks and barricades are hampering the IRGC’s movements.

Yesterday, captain Reza Sayyadi was killed by people of #Mahshahr in Southwest of #Iran. Sayyadi was a platoon commander of Special Pasdaran Brigade of #Ahvaz‘s Police. He ordered his fireteam to kill protesters. People of #Mahshahr then punished him & killed him.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/qr5ZRVfYxQ — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 19, 2019

Watch how my brave compatriots resisted suppression in #Marivan today. While security forces including #Basij militiamen armed with AK-47 Assault rifles open fire at them, they resist and defend themselves with stones.#IranProtests against #Iran‘s Islamic Regime. pic.twitter.com/8UHoaO2LI9 — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 19, 2019

Today people closed #Tehran–#Karaj highway in protest against #Iran‘s Islamic Regime. It effectively prevented the security forces from deploying reinforcements toward Karaj.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/vwJzk4z0Kc — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 18, 2019

☞ ☞ Below: A video that leaked out from Tehran shows a woman protester climbing a street lamp post, tearing down a “Death to America” banner with crowds cheering her on and helping her.

In Shiraz, two IRGC soldiers were shot dead by a superior officer after the two refused to fire on the people.

Another video shows fed up residents of the city of Shiraz setting fire to Islamic centers and the offices of various Mullahs and representatives of the regime’s clerical leadership.

Also, according to people on the ground in Ahvaz, the regime has imported members of the Khomeinist regime proxy group in Iraq, Hashd al Shaabi milita (aka The Popular Mobilization Forces or PMF) from Iraq to reinforce the IRGC presence there. Though protests in Iraq itself continue and the PMF forces are being spread thin. Interestingly, a New York Times report revealed previously classified American documents detailing how the IRGC and its Iraqi seized control over Baghdad in 2014-2015. Other observers noted that this was another fruit of bad policy from the former Obama administration.

In the below video, a brave Iranian woman tears off her headscarf and begins to loudly cry out protesting against the Khomeinist regime’s oppression of people of Iran and Iranian women who have been long-suffering under the gender apartheid of the Shia dictatorship.

In the city of Varameen people continue night protests, setting fire to the regime security forces kiosks on the streets.

Tuesday, November 19th

Heavy fighting continues, while the Internet remains offline. The death toll now stands at 106, according to a statement today from Amnesty International. Other estimates have put it closer to 200. Protests continue onwards. News is also being smuggled out that in some places, the regime has cut all electricity to punish the inhabitants.

Information gathered by us reveals a harrowing pattern of unlawful killings by Iranian security forces. The Iranian authorities must end this brutal & deadly crackdown immediately & show respect for human life. https://t.co/EXOIx1BNOh — Amnesty International (@amnesty) November 19, 2019

A source inside Ministry of Interior of Iran has told Sh.Alavai that Iranian security forces have killed 200 of protesters and have wounded more than 3,000. People on the ground tell me that they’ve never seen such well equipped security forces(thousands)deployed on the streets. https://t.co/UEDuE9L9f7 — Raman Ghavami (@Raman_Ghavami) November 19, 2019

Worrisome video from #Iran shows security shooting at protestors. Video obtained by BBC filmed Monday in Kermanshah (West) Amnesty Int’l estimates death toll at 106 killed. Complete internet blackout for > 3 days now. Protests in Day 5: pic.twitter.com/safNKcoLJ3 — Joyce Karam (@Joyce_Karam) November 19, 2019

In Shiraz, protesters briefly took control over the entire city. All government buildings, including clerical offices, were seized and torched. Crowds attempted to storm the city’s prison and free those held there. The IRGC counterattacked and is said to have retaken the city. The Qashqai nomadic tribe, which is armed, is now said to be fighting the IRGC, and inflicting causalities on them.

Footages from #Shiraz

Last night

City looking like a battleground#IranPortests pic.twitter.com/opJVCxHZhQ — mina bai (@bai_mina) November 19, 2019

صدرا دفتر امام‌جمعه رو آتیش زدند”

شیراز ۲۷آبان

امام جمعه گفته بود می ایید ما سرکوب کنید ما خدمت شما رسیدیم pic.twitter.com/9JUzTVP3cv — اعتراض مدنی بازار (@EterazB) November 18, 2019

Just-In: Iranian security forces have managed to suppress protestors in Shiraz.

For now all the streets are under the regime forces control. A person just told me that tonight protestors may out and push back on regime forces but for now people have been entirely pushed back. https://t.co/NHfsdOS5kp — Raman Ghavami (@Raman_Ghavami) November 19, 2019

Regime forces also appear to be have been repelled from Shahryar.

Courageous protestors chased out the security forces off the streets in Shahryar.#IranPortests pic.twitter.com/vLJ98jEn59 — Farashgard Foundation (@FarashgardFdn) November 19, 2019

Reports this evening are alleging that the IRGC is now engaging in a wholesale massacre in an effort to terrorize the people back into submission.

There is an absolute massacre happening in #Iran pic.twitter.com/sSa7NVdsUi — Potkin Azarmehr (@potkazar) November 19, 2019

#BREAKING: #IRGC has established curfew in most of #Iran‘s cities.Tens of Imam-Hussein, Imam-Ali & Ashoora battalions of #Basij are deployed across Iran. They can stay alert for max 72hrs. Video is recorded an hour ago in #Varamin near #Tehran shows them in streets.#IranProtests pic.twitter.com/X63bgUKn3g — Babak Taghvaee (@BabakTaghvaee) November 19, 2019

Families of those killed by the regime are being forced to confess that their loved ones were “thugs” in order to be able to recover their remains.

The Islamic regime in Iran, shoots at people so bruitaly and does not even spare the corpses.

In Behbahan they took a large bail from families for delivering the bodies! They were made to testify that their killed children were thugs.#IranProtestspic.twitter.com/YBoLI6Lg9S — Maryam shariatmadari (@Maryamshariatm) November 19, 2019

How Will It End?

If this movement is to succeed in overthrowing the Islamic regime and not be quashed as previous ones were, it is essential that the Iranian people find a means of communicating with each other by overriding the regime’s Internet blockage. Brian Hook stated today that the US government is working on creating such a network for Iranians. Other activists in the diaspora have been recommending that Iranians use the Mesh app, a secure communications program that has been put to good use by the protestors in Hong Kong. Activists are all posting instructions over social media for how to hide one’s face when posting videos.

We have the technical ability to turn the internet on for the people of Iran. And ensure it is free of government blockers. Europe and America should do it together. @realDonaldTrump @RegSprecher @SecPompeo @HeikoMaas https://t.co/RsJgLFs3rN — Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) November 17, 2019

A message to the Iranian people from U.S. Special Representative to Iran Brian Hook. #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/UkCuJtclVz — Department of State (@StateDept) November 19, 2019