CNN
—
Human rights watchdog Amnesty International said up to 10 people, including children, may have been killed Friday in a crackdown on protests by Iranian security forces in southeast Iran.
Amnesty International said in several Twitter posts on Friday that security forces fired live ammunition at “peaceful protesters from the roofs of the governor’s office and several other buildings” in Hash city in Sistan and Balchestan provinces. said he did
The province, which borders Pakistan and Afghanistan, is home to members of the long-oppressed, predominantly Sunni-Muslim Baluchi ethnic group and has a history of unrest.
Friday’s riots came amid nationwide protests over the death of Martha Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died after being detained by moral police in Tehran.
Massive demonstrations also recently took place in Sistan and Zahedan, the capital of Balchestan province, following the alleged rape of a Baluchi girl by a police chief.
Authorities dismissed Zahedan’s police chief last week, but protests continued, with a senior Shia cleric shot dead by masked gunmen in Zahedan on Thursday, according to state news agency IRNA. .
Protests against the authorities erupted into riots in several cities in southeastern Iran on Friday, including Kas, according to state media and activists. A city video posted by state media showed smoke billowing from the building.
Amnesty International cited eyewitnesses and footage obtained from various sources in its report.
The group said it was “severely concerned about further bloodshed amid internet turmoil and reports that authorities have brought more security forces from Zahedan to Qash.”
“Iranian authorities must immediately restrain the security forces. UN member states must immediately express their concerns to the Iranian ambassador and support the establishment of an independent investigative mechanism by the UN Human Rights Council,” Amnesty International said. .
The Coordinating Council of the Iranian Teachers Association (CCITTA) also tweeted on Friday that at least 16 protesters were killed and dozens more injured after Iranian security forces opened fire on protesters in Qash.
CNN cannot independently verify the death toll figures provided by either Amnesty International or CCITTA. It is impossible for anyone other than the Iranian government to ascertain the exact death toll. Figures vary for opposition groups, international rights groups and local journalists.
A video shared with CNN by Khash activist outlet IranWire appears to show several protesters injured and unconscious on the ground after loud gunshots rang out in the background.
Meanwhile, the country’s semi-official Fars news agency posted images on Twitter of charred cars and damaged buildings, blaming “rioters” for the damage.
“Several people were killed or injured during the riots in Kaş on Friday,” Furs said in a tweet.
“Governmental districts, jihad agriculture buildings and several other government buildings, several kiosks and police cars, people’s cars, and almost every bank were set on fire by the mob,” Furs added.
Fars claimed the Khash protests took place after Friday prayers at a Sunni mosque in the area.
