Iranian General acknowledges death of 300 people in anti-governmental protests in Iran

The anti-government protests in Iran have escalated to a great extent since they erupted in September. The protests that have taken a violent turn have also taken the lives of numerous people about which the Iranian administration has kept a mum, until recently.

On Monday, Iranian General Amir Ali Hajizadeh acknowledged that more than 300 people have been killed amidst the growing turbulence that has engulfed the country. This was the first official assertion of casualties in the anti-government protest in Iran. 

The numbers claimed by the Iranian general are less than what was previously claimed by a US-based Human Rights activist group, which has been closely tracking the protest that erupted after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of Iran’s morality police. According to AP, the group has claimed that around 451 protestors and 60 security forces have been killed with 18,000 people taken under detention. The anti-government protest is one of the biggest threats the Iranian administration faced since the 1979 Iranian revolution which brought the government into power in the first place. 

According to AP, the commander of the aerospace division of the paramilitary Revolution Guard, Iranian General Amir Ali Hajizadeh told a local media outlet that more than 300 people have been killed, the number including “martyrs” in the security forces. General Hajizadeh claimed that those killed were “ordinary Iranians not involved in the protests.” Although the Iranian General didn’t provide the source of such estimation. 

Niece of Iranian Supreme Leader urged people to 'cut ties with Iran'

Earlier this week, the niece of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei took a stance against the Iranian administration. The Iranian Leader’s Niece, Farideh Moradkhani urged the “conscientious people of the world” to support Iranian protestors and “cut ties” with Tehran. She put out her message in a video shared by her brother who is based in France. 

Mordkhani is a long-time activist whose late father has been a vital opposition to Khamenei. Modhkhani who has been imprisoned on numerous occasions is one of the closest family members of Iran’s Supreme leader to be arrested. In the video statement, Mordkhani was seen saying, “I ask the conscientious people of the world to stand by us and ask their governments not to react with empty words and slogans but with real action and stop any dealings with this regime.” The fires of the anti-government protests are still raging as the protest enters its third month.