Rationed gasoline caused rioting in Iran last Friday, and six days later, it's all over. Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) have declared the riots over.
"The leaders of the riots have already been identified and arrested in the big cities and that was one of the reasons for the end of the riots," said IRGC spokesman Ramesan Sharif. According to Sharif, there had been "minor and major incidents" in 100 cities. Thanks to the timely intervention of the police and the IRGC, the situation is back under control. IRGC spokesman Sharif accused the US and Israel of being behind the riots.
The alleged end of the protests also saw to it that the government-imposed days-long Internet ban was lifted in many parts of Iran. According to the news agency Isna, the Internet worked again in many Iranian cities on Thursday. Access to the Internet was also possible in the capital Tehran, although some users still had problems. These should be fixed according to Isna soon.
80 million people affected by Internet blocking
Because of the riots, the National Security Council had blocked the Internet since Saturday afternoon. This was to prevent information, pictures and videos from being distributed by the protests.
Internet blocking was a big problem for the population and the blockade paralyzed many everyday activities. Over 80 million people were unable to send or receive mail, or access short message services or Google searches for five days. Also the work of the media was enormously impaired by the lock.
ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH / EPA-EFE / REX
80 million Iranians were cut off from the Internet
The United Nations had pushed for de-escalation. The EU called on all sides in Iran to renounce violence in the face of alarming reports of numerous deaths during the protests. Iran's leadership downplayed the protests. According to Iranian sources, nine people were killed and 1,000 arrested during the riots. The human rights organization Amnesty International reported at least 106 deaths in 21 cities. Eyewitnesses spoke of even more dead. However, this information can not be independently verified.
The federal government also denounced the handling of Iranian security forces with demonstrators. "We are horrified by the reports of more than 100 deaths and condemn the disproportionate actions of the Iranian security forces," said a spokeswoman for the Foreign Office in the evening in Berlin. The right to peaceful protests must be safeguarded, the people of Iran should be able to express their opinions freely and peacefully. The Foreign Ministry called on the Iranian security forces to the greatest possible restraint.
