mourning the death of the young Mahsa Amini at the hands of Iran’s ‘morality police’ has ended. At least formally, since the tradition of Shiite Islam dictates that the duel ends after 40 days of death and, in the case of the 22-year-old, the threshold was crossed on Wednesday, when tens of thousands of people gathered at her grave. The rage and the painnevertheless, continue to spread on the streets across the country.
In recent days, the protests against the government of Ebrahim Raisi and the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, have intensified. There are more and more those who, with cries of “Death to the dictator!” and “Woman, life, freedom!” defy the strict rules of conduct imposed by the regime.
For their part, the Iranian authorities, unable to quell what are already the most intense uprisings of the last three years, have responded with more brute force. In the last month and a half, the repression of the security forces It has already left 185 dead, according to figures handled by the NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR), based in Norway. There are videos that even show how the security forces they open fire and launch tear gas against the population.
Protests in Iran.
[El Rugido del León: Las mujeres iraníes lideran la Contrarrevolución islámica]
But that’s not all: According to the US government, Iran is learning repressive tactics from Russia. Just this week, the White House press secretary, Karine Jean Pierrepointed out during a press conference that there is evidence that the Kremlin “could be advising the Iranian regime on what are the best practices to manage the protests, based on extensive experience of Russia in the repression of open demonstrations”.
Just remember how at the end of September the russian security forces arrested more than 1,000 people in a protest called by a peace movement against the partial mobilization announced by the president Vladimir Putin.
Along the same lines, the spokesman for the US National Security Council, John Kirbylater confirmed that “signs had been seen” that Moscow might “be training the Iranians” to control the mobilizations.
[La UE sanciona a 11 dirigentes y 4 entidades de Irán por reprimir las protestas de mujeres]
Iranian military support for Russia
Although neither of the two representatives of the Biden Administration provided evidence on these accusations, both referred to the close relationship between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Ebrahim Raisiunited by their animosity towards the West. Only in the last three months, both leaders have met up to twice.
In recent months, moreover, Iran has been providing military aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine, according to intelligence services of various countries. Specifically, according to the kyiv army, the Kremlin would have launched numerous attacks with Iranian-made Shahed-136 kamikaze drones.
Zelensky delivering last night’s speech to the nation in a pitch-black Kyiv next to a downed Iranian suicide drone.
He says “we aren’t afraid of the dark.” pic.twitter.com/X9UxMBuJ67
— Visegrad 24 (@visegrad24) October 28, 2022
The evidence of cooperation between the two countries has been compelling for the European Union, which has recently extended the list of sanctions against leaders and entities linked to the Ayatollah regime in Iran.
“The evidence that Iran is helping Russia wage its war against Ukraine is clear and it is public. Iran and Russia are growing closer as they become more isolated. Our message to Iran is very, very clear: stop killing your people and stop sending weapons to Russia to help kill Ukrainians,” Jean-Pierre warned.
