Iran’s supreme leader demands a crackdown on ‘seditionists’, accusing them of killing thousands in protests, as internet blackout hampers verification of the death toll.
PARIS: Iran’s supreme leader said authorities “must break the back of the seditionists”.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused them of killing thousands during a wave of protests that were brutally repressed.
The demonstrations were sparked by anger over economic hardship and became the biggest protests against the Islamic republic in over three years.
Demonstrations have subsided after a crackdown that rights groups say left thousands dead under an internet blackout lasting more than a week.
“By God’s grace, the Iranian nation must break the back of the seditionists just as it broke the back of the sedition,” Khamenei told supporters in a televised address.
He added that “agents… murdered a few thousand people,” in what appeared to be his first admission of that scale of death.
Iranian authorities have blamed the demonstrations on the United States and Israel, calling them a “terrorist operation” that hijacked peaceful protests.
Khamenei lashed out at former US President Donald Trump, accusing him of being “guilty for the casualties”.
“This was an American conspiracy,” he said, adding that “America’s goal is to swallow Iran”.
Authorities have said the “riots” are under control, with state-aligned media reporting thousands of arrests.
Rights groups have estimated up to 20,000 people have been detained, while security officials cited by local media put the figure at around 3,000.
Alarm has mounted over the reported death toll, as verifying cases remains difficult under severe internet restrictions.
Norway-based Iran Human Rights says 3,428 protesters have been verified killed by security forces, but warns the actual toll could be several times higher.
Other estimates place the death toll at more than 5,000, and possibly as high as 20,000.
An opposition channel based outside Iran has said at least 12,000 people were killed, citing senior government and security sources.
Eyewitnesses who left Iran told AFP of coming under fire and hearing numerous gunshots during protests.
One witness said he saw “thousands of dead bodies” at a mortuary in Tehran after being fired upon during a protest.
Internet connectivity continues to be severely restricted in Iran despite minor, short-lived bumps in access.
People in Iran were reportedly able to send text messages but often unable to receive them from abroad.
Reza Pahlavi, the US-based son of the ousted shah, took to social media to call for Iranians to protest again.
