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Protest on walls in Tehran: The words »Woman, life, freedom«, the main slogan of the demonstrators, are said to have been painted over
Photo: - / AFP
The protests in Iran continue with undiminished force: despite hundreds of arrests, rallies have again taken place across the country.
Shots were fired in Isfahan, Karaj and Saghes, according to videos by the Norway-based human rights organizations Iran Human Rights (IHR) and Hengaw.
At least 201 people have been killed during the protests, according to activists.
The north-western province of Kurdistan in particular was once again rocked by protests.
According to several human rights organizations, the security forces in the provincial capital, Sanadaj, are said to be taking particularly tough action against the demonstrators.
The 22-year-old Kurd Mahsa Amini, whose death triggered the wave of protests, came from Sanadaj.
In Tehran, female students took to the streets without headscarves and chanted "Death to the dictator," according to video verified by AFP news agency.
The Iranian news agency Isna reported that a large number of police officers were deployed in the capital.
Demonstration in front of the Bar Association in Tehran
Lawyers also joined the protests in Tehran.
Before the Bar Association, they criticized the lack of legal representation for the demonstrators who had been arrested.
According to IHR, the security forces used tear gas to disperse the rally.
At least three lawyers were arrested, according to a report in the Schargh newspaper.
Most of the demonstrators who have been arrested have not yet been entitled to lawyers.
Not even their families are informed about the whereabouts of those arrested.
During the anti-government protests, demonstrators are increasingly using slogans on house walls.
In the past few days, signs such as "Death to the dictator" and the main slogan of the protest movement: "Woman, life, freedom" could be read in several districts of the capital Tehran.
They are mostly painted over by the city administration, but there have been new slogans for a short time.
According to diplomats, the EU countries agreed on new sanctions against Iran on Wednesday.
According to diplomatic circles, the EU foreign ministers are to officially decide on the sanctions at a meeting in Luxembourg on Monday.
Further details were not known.
According to IHR, at least 201 people, including 23 children, have been killed in the protests, which have been going on for almost a month.
The Tehran-based Iranian Society for the Protection of Children's Rights said families were also "left in the dark about the whereabouts of their children."
In addition, minors are deprived of the assistance of lawyers and the examination of their cases by juvenile judges.
Society demanded that the government be "held accountable" for these abuses.
The deputy commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, Ali Fadawi, told Iranian media a week ago that the "average age of those arrested at many of the recent protests" was 15 years.
However, Iranian Education Minister Yussef Nuri on Wednesday denied that students had been detained.
The judiciary has now initiated investigations against more than 120 demonstrators.
As "Misan Online", the website of the Iranian judiciary, reported on Wednesday, 60 proceedings against protesters were initiated in the capital province of Tehran alone.
Another 65 cases were reported from the southern province of Hormosgan.
The supreme spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, again accused Iran's "enemies" of being "involved in the unrest".
At the beginning of October he had already accused the USA and Israel of fueling the protests.
According to experts, the Iranian authorities are having great difficulty containing the protests.
The reason is therefore the duration and the various forms of protest, which range from demonstrations to individual resistance actions.
kfr/AFP/dpa
