Protestors marched in Iran’s restive southeast on Friday against the Iranian regime despite an intense security presence and apparent blocking of the internet, activists said.
Anti-government demonstrations have been taking place across the Islamic Republic since last September’s death in custody of Mahsa Amini for flouting Tehran’s hijab policy. They have since morphed into one of the boldest challenges to Iran’s theocracy since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Footage posted on Telegram showed protestors brandishing slogans including “death to the dictator” as they took to the streets of Zahedan, the capital of the Sistan-Baluchistan province.
The province – which borders Pakistan and is Iran’s poorest region – has been one of the focal points of the unrest. At least 131 people have been killed in the crackdown there, according to Iran Human Rights, half of which were recorded on a single day in Zahedan a week after the nationwide protests erupted, dubbed “Bloody Friday.”
There was a major security presence in the capital as worshippers sought to prevent security forces from entering the city’s main mosque ahead of Friday prayers, the Baluch Activists Campaign and Hal Vesh website said.
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