TEHRAN, Aug 4, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Iranian protesters have attacked a
religious school in Karaj province near Tehran, the conservative Fars news
agency reported Saturday, as sporadic protests simmered ahead of the
reimposition of US sanctions.
Iranian authorities have barely mentioned days of protests in the major
cities of Isfahan, Shiraz, Mashhad and Tehran, driven by concerns over the
economy as well as wider anger at the political system.
During past unrest, conservative outlets have focused on attacks against
sensitive symbols such as religious buildings as a way of tarnishing the
protests.
“At 9 pm (1530 GMT on Friday) they attacked the school and tried to break
the doors down and burn things,” Fars quoted the head of the school in the
town of Ishtehad, Hojatoleslam Hindiani, as saying.
It gave only his clerical rank — Hojatoleslam — not his given name.
“They were about 500 people and they chanted against the system but they
were dispersed by the riot police and some have been arrested,” Hindiani
said.
“These people came with rocks and broke the sign and all the windows of
the prayer house and they were chanting against the system.”
Videos on social media in recent days have shown people marching in the
streets of several cities, chanting “Death to the dictator” and other radical
slogans.
But these have been impossible to verify and the authorities have charged
that they are promoted by foreign-based opposition groups funded by the US,
Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Foreign media are barred from observing or filming “unauthorised”
protests.
The videos on social media suggest the protests in recent days are far
from the scale of the unrest seen in December and January, when at least 25
people were killed in demonstrations that spread to dozens of towns and
cities.
– Sanctions return –
But Iranians are deeply concerned about the implications of the
reimposition of US sanctions for the already troubled economy.
The US walked out of the 2015 nuclear deal in May and is reimposing
“maximum pressure” sanctions in two phases — the first on Tuesday and then a
second on November 5.
The first phase includes blocks on financial transactions and imports of
raw materials, as well as sanctions on Iran’s automotive sector and
commercial aircraft purchases.
Iran Air announced that it would take delivery of five ATR aircraft from
the French-Italian firm on Sunday, sneaking under the wire before the
sanctions on aircraft purchases return.
Iran says the sanctions are endangering lives by blocking the sale of new
planes and spare parts for its ageing fleets.
Iran’s Aseman Airlines was ordered to ground its fleet of ATR planes in
February after one of them crashed in the Zagros mountains, killing all 66
people onboard.
Remaining sanctions — including on Iran’s oil and gas sector and central
bank — will resume on November 5.
Although smaller foreign firms have vowed to work around the US sanctions,
multinationals such as France’s Total and Peugeot, and Germany’s Siemens have
already said they will have to pull out.
Increased US hostility has also driven a run on Iran’s currency, which has
lost around two-thirds of its value in six months.
It is not yet clear how all this will affect ordinary Iranians, but a
Western diplomat in Tehran who monitors the economy said prices of basic
foods were already creeping up.
“We are already seeing car prices going through the roof over fears about
raw material imports,” she said.
“In November, when oil sales are affected, we will have a clearer view of
the impact on daily lives.”
She said the collapse in the value of the rial was not driven by purely
economic factors but instead by people rushing to buy gold or hard currency
as a safe haven for their savings because they do not trust the government to
improve the situation.
“There is a massive loss of confidence in the financial system and the
government’s ability to control things and withstand sanctions,” she told