#iran-protests

#iran-protests

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham was all smiles aboard Air Force One on Sunday as he posed with President Donald Trump and the Make Iran Great Again hat signed by the commander in chief. The South Carolina lawmaker shared the photo on social media on Monday morning, the day after he hitched a ride on the presidential plane to Washington, D.C., after Trump's holiday vacation in Mar-a-Lago. Another great day with @POTUS who has brought America back, stronger than ever, at home and abroad, Graham wrote in the X post.

At least three children are reported to have been killed and more than 40 minors arrested after eight days of the ongoing protests across Iran, as human rights groups accuse the regime's security forces of indiscriminate targeting of civilians. The nationwide uprising sparked by the collapse of the country's currency and rising living costs has spread to at least 78 cities and 222 locations, with demonstrators calling for the end of the regime. The protests continued over the weekend despite a worsening crackdown by security forces after comments from the country's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, who addressed protesters as rioters.

If Iran shots [sic] and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue. We are locked and loaded and ready to go.

The largest protests in Iran for three years entered a fifth day on Thursday amid reports of deadly clashes between protesters and security forces, with state-affiliated media confirming at least two people had been killed. Although state media did not identify those killed, witnesses and videos circulating on social media appear to show protesters lying motionless on the ground after security forces opened fire.

Protests in Iran over a plummeting currency and inflation fears continued for a second day in the capital, despite attempts by security forces to disperse crowds with volleys of tear gas. RFE/RL's Radio Farda reported on December 29 that crowds of people were seen chanting slogans about the economic situation and against the government at gatherings at the Grand Bazaar -- where many merchants had closed their shops -- and elsewhere in central Tehran.

A group of victims of the Iranian government crackdown during the Women, Life, Freedom protests in 2022 have filed the first criminal complaint against 40 named Iranian officials alleging crimes against humanity, including targeted blinding and murder. The request for a criminal investigation to be launched has been filed in Argentina by a group of Iranians with the help of the non-profit Iran Human Rights Documentation Center.

A source close to the family told RFE/RL's Radio Farda on September 16, the third anniversary of Amini's death, that her father, Amjad Amini, was summoned by intelligence officials in Saghez, in Iran's Kurdistan Province and warned not to take any action to mark the occassion. Amateur videos posted online showed shops in Saghez closed on September 16 in what was described as a strike by local shopkeepers to mark the anniversary.