IRAN PROTESTS, EXPLAINED

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Protests against the Iranian government have been ongoing for over a week now. The protests first began on December 28, when students took to the streets to protest tuition hikes. However, the protests quickly turned into a call for the resignation of Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani.

At first, the Iranian government tried to use the protests as a way to discredit the student population. However, the protests have continued to grow in size and intensity, with reports of vandalism and violence against government buildings. So far, over 25 people have been killed as a result of the protests, with more than 1,000 arrested. analysts suggest that the Iranian government will not be able to suppress the protests for long, and that a civil war may soon break out in Iran.

With current events unfolding in the Middle East, it has been hard to decipher the motives of both the protesters and their opponents. The protestors are primarily composed of young people who are demonstrating against the current government in Iran, which they say is repressive. Opposition to the government in Iran first emerged in 2009, when the then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced plans to build a nuclear plant. This announcement was met with widespread protest, and the Iranian people later took to the streets to express their concerns. Since President Trump announced his plan to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, the Iranian people have taken to the streets once again. The protests are being led by young people who voice dissatisfaction with the economy, corruption and the autocratic rule of President Rouhani.

The Iranian government has responded to the protests by accusing the protesters of being motivated by foreign backing, and has warned them that they will face consequences if they continue to demonstrate. It is unclear what the future holds for the Iran protests, but there growing intensity suggests that they will continue to play a significant role in Iranian politics for some time to come. It is a series of articles on the current state of the Iranian protests by The Guardian’s Iranian correspondent, Roya Hakakian.

Since the Iranian revolution of 1979, the country’s 82-year-old hard-line Islamic regime has been severely tested by sporadic protests and calls for change. But the recent demonstrations – which began on 30 December, the biggest outbreak of public dissent in Iran since 2009 – are spreading rapidly, and have gathered momentum beyond the more than 40 cities where they began. The protests have givenvoicetoa simmering Angeragainstcorruption and officialmismanagement, as well aslong-standing principles of resistance against unfair treatment by the wealthy and powerful. While slogans of “death to the dictator” and “freedom, democracy and human rights” are recognisable to anyone who has followed the uprisings in other countries, there is also a strong sense of localism and a disdain for outside interference.

Outsiders trying to understand the dynamics of the protests are struggling to make sense of a patchwork of grievances that range from mistreatment of the poor to corruption and a lack of political freedoms. There is also a strong sense of alienation within Iran’s large, rapidly growing urban populace, which feels that its interests have been neglected by the government while the country’s wealth has been mismanaged. A long and complicated road lies ahead for the Iranian protesters. While they have managed to galvanise an unusually broad cross-section

There are a number of reasons why people in Iran are protesting. The most important reason is that the Iranian government is not allowing people to have a voice. The Iranian people want change, and they want their voice to be heard. The Iranian government is not giving them the freedom to express themselves.