Tuesday, January 2, 2018

Iranian official blames murder of protesters on “foreign agents” and Sunnis

DEC 31, 2017 7:45 AM BY ROBERT SPENCER27 COMMENTS

Of course. For jihadis, it’s always someone else’s fault.

“Iran’s government warns protesters they will ‘pay the price’ for mass unrest,” by Erin Cunningham, Washington Post, December 31, 2017:

ISTANBUL — Iran’s government on Sunday warned protesters they would pay a heavy price for breaking the law after three days of unrest spread across the country and two demonstrators were killed.

“Those who damage public property and create disorder are accountable before the law and must pay the price,” Interior Minister Abdolrahman Rahman Fazli said Sunday, according to state media.

An official in western Iran also confirmed that two demonstrators had been shot and killed in Lorestan province Saturday night, when mass peaceful protests escalated into attacks on government buildings and confrontations with police.

Habibollah Khojastehpour, the deputy governor of Lorestan, blamed the protesters’ deaths on “foreign agents” and Sunni militants he said had infiltrated the area.

“No bullets were shot from police and security forces at the people,” he said on state television Sunday, the Associated Press reported.

Reuters had reported late Saturday that videos on social media showed two men lying on the ground covered with blood. A voice-over said the men had been shot dead by riot police firing on protesters.

The anti-government protests were the largest since a 2009 uprising over disputed election results, and were poised to seriously challenge the administration of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, a moderate politician who promised key economic reforms.

The demonstrations began Thursday to oppose high unemployment and rising costs, including a 40 percent jump in the price of eggs. But they swiftly expanded to take on a system many protesters have said is corrupt.

“Down with the dictator!” some demonstrators chanted, as they tore down posters of the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, in central Tehran. Protesters defied police from Kermanshah in the west to the holy city of Qom in the north and Ahvaz southwest of the capital, according to footage uploaded onto social media. Many of the images could not be confirmed….