Iran Focus

London, 8 Jan – There are many things that have paved the way to the Iranian protests from the Regime’s inadequate reaction to the November earthquake which left 30,000 homeless to the severe cuts made in the Regime’s latest budget proposal to the massive hike in basic food products, but at the centre of it all is corruption and abuse by the Iranian Regime.

Majid Ahadi, a 25-year-old mechanic, took to the streets on Friday, December 29, to protest endemic corruption and mismanagement.

He said: “You hear about one thing or another sparking the demonstrations, but it wasn’t a single thing – it was a perfect storm. There was so much pressure on the people, it just exploded.”

Iran Focus

London, 8 Jan – The Vice President of the USA, Mike Pence, wrote an op-ed for Washington Post voicing his support for the Iranian people and stating that Donald Trump will not ignore the Iranian people’s cries for freedom.

Pence explained that during the 2009 Green Revolution- which was much smaller than the current protests- brave Iranians stood up to denounce a fraudulent election and demand an end to the brutal regime that suppressed them.

He wrote: “Those brave protesters looked to the leader of the free world for support. But as I saw firsthand as a member of Congress, [Barack Obama] the president of the United States stayed silent.”

Iran Focus

London, 8 Jan – Well into its second week of protests, the Iranian people’s uprising is not going away anytime soon.

While modern Iran has seen its fair share of revolutions, one on the same scale as the current protest has not been seen since 1979. With that level of raw anger, how could anyone believe the security forces when they claim that the protests are all but over?

The protesters are mainly working-class Iranians whose needs are largely ignored by the ruling elite, and as such the protests are evident all over Iran from the biggest cities to the smallest villages. The Regime, who expected the largest protests to be held in major cities, were caught off guard by this.

Iran Focus

London, 6 Jan – If you persist, the world will stand with you and on your side.

Ending the silence on Iran and shattering a 4-decade-old barrier of appeasement of the regime, the UN Security Council’s meeting on Iran is a product of the Iranian people’s uprising, the sacrifice of its martyrs and the suffering of its captives. The world’s major governments had so far turned a blind eye on brutal suppression of our people and executions of 120,000. Iran’s protesters and youths, however, have in their first step turned the page of the United Nations and Security Council’s history on Iran. This indicates that the young men and women who rose up in the streets of Izeh, Doroud, Tuyserkan, Ghahdarijan, Jouyabad of Isfahan, and 75 other cities can and must turn the darkest page of Iran’s history.

Iran Focus

London, 6 Jan – US Ambassador Nikki Haley said “Iran is now on notice: the world will be watching what you do,” during an emergency meeting of UN Security Council on mass anti-government protests in Iran. On Friday January 5.

Nikki Haley accused Iranian regime of funding a pro-regime military campaign in Syria, backing Shia militias in Iraq and supporting a crony elite while ordinary Iranians struggle.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley warned Iranian authorities on Friday that the world is watching, as thousands held pro-government demonstrations in Iran following anti-government protests, in which over 21 people were killed.

Iran Focus

London, 5 Jan – As the protests against the Iranian Government continue into their second week, many are speculating on what the world should be doing to support the Iranian people in their struggle for a free Iran.

Many US politicians- including Donald Trump- have tweeted their support of the Iranian people but there is much more they can do from imposing sanctions on the Government to arming the Iranian people.

Protests

The protests, which began on December 28 in response to a sharp increase in the cost of living, soon took on a general anti-Government sentiment with many calling for the resignation (or even the heads) of the Government’s key figures, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Iran Focus

London, 5 Jan – Social media is playing an ‘extremely important’ role in the current Iranian protests, despite censorship efforts by the Iranian Regime. The fact is that internet access has grown significantly over the last ten years, which is why social media is playing such a big part in these protests in a way that it didn’t in the 2009 uprising over the disputed election result.

Experts believe, that it has made a tremendous difference between now and then. One difference between now and 2009 is that almost the whole nation is now plugged online. Which for these protests it’s extremely important.”

Iran Focus

London, 5 Jan – As deep-seated unrest among the citizens risks Iran becoming the next Syria, let’s take a look at how those on the ground have been affected by the disastrous decisions of the Iranian government.

These protests initially began because of a sharp increase in the cost of living, but soon turned into a wide-ranging demonstration against everything that this wrong with the Regime.

Mohsen, 20, a protester in Karaj, expressed despair at the state of the economy- which has been horrendously mismanaged- and the high unemployment rates.