ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iranian parliamentarians on Sunday called on authorities to hasten the process of dealing with the protesters whom they describe as “enemies of god” and execute them en masse, sparking renewed chants of “death to dictator” during demonstrations across the country.
During the session, lawmaker and hardliner Ahmad Amirabadi Farahani read a statement signed by 227 parliamentarians out of 290 which praised the security forces for killing the “enemies of God” and called for speedy trials and executions for the protesters. The names of the 227 MPs were not published.
Protests began across the Kurdish areas in western Iran (Rojhelat), prompted by the death of a young Kurdish woman, Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, on September 16 while in police custody in Tehran and soon spread to all over the country.
The authorities responded by opening fire, killing at least 304 people as of Saturday, including at least 41 children across the country according to the latest tally by the Oslo based Iran Human Rights.
Kurdistan Human Rights Network said on Sunday that at least 53 protesters have been killed in the Kurdish areas while Hengaw Organization for Human Rights put the number at 61.
The lawmakers accused the US and other countries perceived as enemies of Iran of providing financial aid as well as arms to protesters, adding that they helped organize the protests which have caused the death of tens of security forces personnel.
“We as the representatives of this nation, call on all the authorities including the judiciary to deal with these enemies of God who like Daesh [Islamic State] using firearms and cold weapons have violated lives and property of people … and deliver God’s judgment on these enemies of God,” the statement read, referring to the Islamic State by its Arabic acronym.
Disgraceful! Members of Parliament in Iran are selected by bodies close to the Supreme Leader and do not represent the will of the people. @UN_HRC must act swiftly to stop these executions. #MahsaAmini https://t.co/vg3NNTvXN5
— Nazanin Boniadi (@NazaninBoniadi) November 7, 2022
The call to execute protesters came a day after 121 lecturers and professors from the prestigious Amirkabir University of Technology in Tehran issued a warning on the harsh crackdown against the protesters, saying it would further fuel the protests.
Protests flared in the Kurdish cities on Sunday after the killing of yet another protester by the security forces in Tehran. In Tehran and Kerman, people took to the street chanting against the regime and burning headscarves.
Mariwan city in the Kurdistan province was the scene of intense street clashes and by nightfall, the city resembled a warzone as the crack of gunfire echoed in the scenic Kurdish city where hundreds of riot police and plain clothes agents roamed the streets.
The crackdown in the Kurdish and Baluchi areas in southeast Iran has been severe. In two massacres in Zaheda and Khash towns at least 108 people were killed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) which is in charge of the region. The IRGC-linked outlets continued their attacks on the main Sunni cleric, Mawlana Abdul Hamid, in Zahedan and accused him of fanning the flames of the protest, an indication that the authorities may move against him.
Abdul Hamid has fearlessly criticized the authorities for the killing of the protesters across the country, in particular in Baluchestan area.
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