Rising death tolls were claimed by Iranian authorities and a Kurdish rights organization on Wednesday as protests continued for the fifth day and new social media restrictions were implemented in response to the death of a lady who was held by the morality police.
Hengaw, a Kurdish rights organization, said that 10 protestors had died. In addition to the seven persons the organization claimed were slain by security forces on Wednesday, three more perished.
According to Hengaw, locals, and internet shutdown watchdog NetBlocks, officials reportedly imposed internet access restrictions when there was no evidence that the protests were abating.
Activists voiced worry that the internet blackout was a repeat of a government action before to a crackdown on the 2019 gasoline price demonstrations, which according to Reuters resulted in 1,500 fatalities.
Residents and NetBlocks said that several mobile phone networks had been shut down and that access to Instagram, the one significant social media platform that Iran typically permits and which has millions of users, had been banned.
Anger about topics like freedoms in the Islamic Republic and a struggling economy brought on by sanctions was released as a result of Amini’s passing. Women have been active in the protests, waving and burning their veils, and some have even had their hair chopped in the open.
A protester in the region of Kurdistan in northwest Asia claimed, “We are receiving threats from the security organizations to cease the protests or risk incarceration.”
In addition to the 10 demonstrators who perished, according to Hengaw, 450 others were also hurt during the protests, which largely took place in the northwest.
Social media users posted videos of protesters vandalizing Islamic Republic insignia and battling security personnel.