Iranian University Students Protest Against Government, Clash with Pro-Government Groups
TL/DR –
University students in Iran staged protests, clashing with pro-government groups, to coincide with ceremonies mourning those killed during recent anti-government demonstrations. A video allegedly shows protesters at Tehran’s Sharif University condemning Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a “murderous leader” and advocating for Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s toppled shah. Protests were also held at universities in Beheshti, Amir Kabir, Tehran, Mashhad, and Abdanan, a western town known to be a hotspot for such demonstrations.
A fresh wave of student protests spread across multiple Iranian universities on Saturday, resulting in clashes with pro-government factions, as reported by local news outlets and social media posts.
These protests align chronologically with traditional ceremonies mourning victims of security force executions during the recent anti-government uprising. This was the most severe domestic unrest since Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Footage reveals a group of protestors at Tehran’s Sharif University of Technology denouncing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a “murderous leader”. They demanded Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the overthrown shah, as the new monarch.
State-associated news outlets like SNN broadcasted scenes of conflict. Protestors reportedly injured volunteer student Basij militia with rock-throwing at Iran’s premier engineering university. Basij members are known to support security forces in suppressing protests.
Universities in Tehran, including Beheshti and Amir Kabir, as well as Mashhad University in the northeast, also staged protests, as per videos released by rights group HAALVSH. Reuters, however, has not been able to confirm these events.
Further west in Abdanan, a protest hub, activists chanted “Death to Khamenei” and “Death to the dictator” following the arrest of a teacher activist, as per reports by rights group Hengaw and social media.
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