Iran Protests: Internet shutdown expands, clashes turn deadly
Shafaq News– Tehran
Protests continued across Iran for a 12th consecutive day on Thursday, as authorities expanded internet restrictions and street confrontations intensified, with reports of fatalities among security forces in several cities.
Demonstrations escalated in Tehran after a speech by Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last shah, in which he expressed support for the protest movement and called on Iranians to mobilize nationwide.
Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported that two members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ground forces were killed during clashes with protesters in the western city of Kermanshah.
The agency also said a security officer was injured during confrontations in the city of Qazvin, while protesters in Mashhad set fire to two public transport buses. Videos circulating online from Tehran showed clashes, including protesters burning tires linked to Iranian security forces amid a strong security presence.
NetBlocks, a global internet monitoring organization, reported that Iran was undergoing a nationwide internet blackout, with real-time network data pointing to a near-total shutdown across the country. Disruptions affected Tehran as well as Kermanshah, Hamedan, Fars, Lorestan, Bushehr, and other regions. The outage spread across public and private networks, sharply degrading virtual private networks (VPNs) and online communication services and leaving residents largely dependent on domestic channels for information.
Read more:Iran’s protests between economic crisis and political contestation
