Businesses across Kurdish cities in western Iran have closed on Wednesday in solidarity with the people of Zahedan, marking the 40th day since the massacre led by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) which killed at least 100 protesters in September.
The IRGC fired at protesters on September 30 in the city of Zahedan killing at least 100 and wounding many more when thousands of Baluchis protested the raping of a teenage girl by a senior police official, as well as the killing of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini at the hands of Tehran morality police.
“Businesses in … Kermanshah, Sanandaj, Mariwan, Saqqez and Baneh are on complete strike to mark the 40th day of the victims of Zahedan resistance,” Hengaw Organization for Human Rights tweeted, adding that in some areas people have started blocking the roads.
Videos from Zahedan showed that businesses are on strike with a large gathering expected on Friday to remember the victims of two massacres committed in Zahedan and Khash by the security forces.
Iran’s judiciary announced that two members of a militant group were hanged in Zahedan on Wednesday, a move that Iran has used in the past to intimidate protesters.
The top Sunni cleric in Baluchestan region and the Sunni population in Iran have come under fierce attack by state media and IRGC-linked outlets for supporting protesters and criticizing authorities for committing the massacres in Zahedan and Khash.
Abdolhamid Ismaeezahi, the cleric that presides over the Makki mosque which is the main house of worship in Zahedan, has been a fierce critic of the Islamic Republic for killing protesters and has been threatened by a number of officials.
Iran has blamed the US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia for being behind the protests but on Tuesday, Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib threatened the UK with retaliation for hosting Iran International, a news outlet that has become a popular among Iranians to receive news about their country as the internet is severely restricted.
At least 304 people have been killed by the security forces as of Saturday, including at least 41 children across the country according to the latest tally by the Oslo based Iran Human Rights.
Kurdistan Human Rights Network said on Sunday that at least 53 protesters have been killed in Kurdish cities while Hengaw Organization for Human Rights put the number at 61.