Over 332,100 people have died of the novel coronavirus in 547 cities across Iran, according to reports tallied daily by the Iranian opposition People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) as of Thursday July 18.
******
Reporting by PMOI/MEK- Iran, July 17, 2021—On Friday, people in different cities of Khuzestan province held demonstrations in protest to water shortages. The people are struggling to carry out their lives in an especially hot summer season and the regime is doing next to nothing to solve their problems. While protests were raging across the province and videos of demonstrations were being posted on social media, the governor of Khuzestan claimed that reports about protests were fake. Protests were seen in Susangerd, Ahvaz, Hoveizeh, among other cities. The regime dispatched security forces to quell the protests. The protesters, who are fed up of the regime not addressing their problems, resisted security forces. In Ahvaz, the people blocked the Ahvaz-Shush-Andimeshk road. In South Ahvaz, the protesters lit fires and blocked roads. Protesters in Shadegan also blocked roads. According to other reports, the regime’s security forces opened fire on protesters. Several people were injured in the attacks of security forces. Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei, the regime’s new chief of judiciary, has ordered more forces to be dispatched to the area. Khuzestan is faced with a severe water crisis, mainly due to the regime’s destructive policies. In recent weeks, reports from Khuzestan show the Hur ol-Azim marsh drying up and livestock dying due to lack of water. At the same time, the province’s inhabitants are facing additional problems due to electricity outages. Last week, the people have held protests over power blackouts. According to the official IRNA news agency, the governor of Khuzestan claimed that videos being posted on social media are outdated and out of context and meant to incite the people to protest against the government. In response people recorded new videos and explicitly stated that these protests are taking place in Khuzestan’s cities. “The governor said videos posted on social media are fake. Hear the voices of protesters,” a local said in a video that shows a large protest in Susangerd. The unjustified creation of dams on the Karun river in the region is the main reason the people are facing water shortages. Khuzestan is one of several provinces that are faced with water shortages due to government policies. In May, the Arman newspaper published a column about hte water shortage crisis and wrote, “This is a struggle that, according to some, is rooted in the inefficiency of government officials in managing water sources and has resulted in the destruction of the lives of many citizens who rely on these water sources to make a living.”
https://tinyurl.com/6kmmfx63******
The Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Mahabad announced the arrest on July 12 of four female models who appeared in a drapery shop’s opening ceremony the week before. On July 11, the Public Relations of the Department of Justice in West Azerbaijan had announced the arrest of the shop owner and the sealing of the shop until further notice. The case is currently under investigation. The shop owner and the four female models are charged with failure to observe the moral norms, engaging in unconventional propaganda, and breaking religious norms. Modeling has been banned in Iran since October 2016 when the State Security Force stepped up its clampdown on women and other people associated with the modeling business. Dozens of women were arrested and thousands of stores were sealed.
https://tinyurl.com/3ffryhhp******
A political prisoner’s mother has slammed the Iranian regime Judiciary’s effort to make prisoners repent to commute their sentences. Fatemeh Maleki’s son, Ali Nourizad, as well as her husband, Mohammad Nourizad, are political prisoners detained in the Greater Tehran Penitentiary and Evin Prison, respectively. Ali is detained for participating in the protests against the IRGC’s downing of the Ukrainian airplane PS752 in January 2020. Excerpts from an audiotape published by this political prisoner’s mother on July 13, 2021: Just in recent days, I have learned that the authorities of the Greater Tehran Penitentiary have taken repentance letters to these children and asked them to sign their repentance. They have told them to repent for what they have done and for their humanitarian move. Imagine during this pandemic!! Last week they took Amir Hossein Moradi who is positive for Covid-19 to a civic hospital, and he is in critical condition. Three days ago, they hospitalized Mr. Vahabzadeh. All the kids there has some kind of illness. My son had chills and fever, body ache, and a bad cold last week… The place seems to be a quarantine but it really is not. They have extended Ali’s quarantine time due to his illness. Ali came out for a five-day furlough, which was extended for one week. Now he has to stay for 24 days in the quarantine where Covid-19 patients are detained. So, there is a chance that he might also contract the disease. Then under such circumstances, the authorities have given them letters of repentance to sign. What do they have to repent from? What have they done to repent? You (the authorities) are the ones who need to repent from your ways! These kids have done nothing but taking humanitarian action. They took part in a protest. My son participated in solidarity with the families of those killed in the downing of the Ukrainian plane. He protested and chanted in solidarity with his fellow human beings. Is he the one to repent, or is it you who have imprisoned so many innocent people? It is really shameful. It’s a real disgrace. I am very sorry… You are driving these children mad with what you do. I talk to them and I know that you are making rebels out of them.
https://tinyurl.com/9665t7fm
