Estimated death toll in Iranian protests reaches 4,000
Iranian people rise against a history of 47 years of oppression.
On December 28, shopkeepers took to the streets of Tehran to protest against the significant fall of Iran’s currency, the rial, compared to the US dollar in the open market and the rise of inflation by 40 per cent. The protesters suffered severe repression from the authorities, leading to the death of at least 4,000 people and more than 18,100 detained, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.
The spike in inflation resulted in the rising prices of everyday items like cooking oil and meat, causing the population to struggle to afford basic necessities. Deputy Interior Minister Ali Akbar Pourjamshidian confirmed that protests have spread to more than 400 cities and towns across Iran.
The Iranian government has responded violently to the protest, deploying weapons such as water cannons, rubber bullets, and live ammunition. Medics have reported to BBC News that hospitals were “overwhelmed” with dead and injured. On January 8, the Iranian government imposed an internet blackout, which made it difficult to get updates from within the country. International news agencies have reported that some protesters were able to use SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service to counter the blockage, but terminals are banned in Iran, and authorities are reportedly attempting to trace them.
US President Donald Trump responded to the increasing toll on January 13 in a Truth Social post, stating, “Iranian patriots, KEEP PROTESTING—TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS.” He added: “I have cancelled all meetings with Iranian Officials until the senseless killing of protesters STOPS. HELP IS ON ITS WAY.” Trump later told reporters that his administration would wait for an accurate report on the number of deaths before acting “accordingly.”
Even though the recent protests were incited by economic reasons, the roots of the Iranian people’s frustrations go far beyond that.
In an interview with The Medium, President of the Persian Students Association (PSA), Bita Khaleghisohi, at the University of Toronto Mississauga, explained how the portrayal of the events as an economic uprising isn’t entirely correct. “I think the main issue with Iran is not that America has sanctions on the country. I think it’s the regime and the lack of freedom they give to the people.” She also explained how the lack of freedom doesn’t kill someone instantly; rather, it slowly tortures people.
She argued that the economic issues posed by the sanctions and a poor administration had immediate consequences. “There’s been a lot of inflation and wages haven’t increased […] people could actually die because they can’t afford food.” She added that these issues posed as a “last straw” for the Iranian people and that it “triggered these uprisings, because they’re not just slowly dying anymore.”
When questioned on how these conflicts might affect students, Khaleghisohi said, “When it first happens, I’m constantly on Instagram trying to see what’s going on, if anything changed.” She mentioned how she had to delete her social media because of the misinformation and hateful comments present on the platform. “It was kind of sad knowing that people were actually dying, and then some are saying that the regime is good. But it’s actually killing my people.”
She also added that students can face difficulties when coming to environments where people don’t have to fight against this kind of violence. “It’s sort of hard to understand the level of difficulty [that] people in Iran are living with. So I guess it can be isolating because not everybody can understand you.” However, she explained that connecting with others, like the PSA, could help with this. “I think connection definitely helps. We [the PSA] are trying to do a gathering for the Persian community here to hang out and connect.”
Khaleghisohi recently helped to organize a rally in Toronto in support of Iranian protesters on January 16. Led by the Iranian Students’ Association at the University of Toronto, the rally drew support from Iranian student organizations nationwide, according to The Varsity.
Khaleghisohi concluded by saying how important she thinks it is that people engage and advocate for these topics, but, mostly, research them before forming an opinion. “If you truly want to talk about this topic, you should do some research before you do. It’s a complicated situation; it’s not something that could fit in a social media post.”
