ISTANBUL: Iran’s police chief said calm had returned across the country after days of unrest, describing Thursday (Jan 15) night as "the calmest night since the unrest began”, and dismissing renewed calls for protests from outside Iran, Anadolu Ajansi reported, citing Press TV.
Brig Gen Ahmadreza Radan said "no gatherings were reported nationwide despite calls for riots on Thursday night”, adding that "calm was restored after a week of unrest” overnight.
"By God’s grace and with the conscious presence of the people, the last nail was driven into the coffin of terrorism,” Radan said.
Authorities said "initial protests over economic conditions escalated into violent riots involving attacks on public property and security forces”.
Iranian authorities announced "multiple arrests linked to the unrest in several provinces, including Fars, Kerman, Hormozgan and Golestan”, saying "weapons, explosives and military-grade ammunition were seized during intelligence-led operations”.
Defence and security officials accused the United States and Israel of backing and financing the violence, claims denied by Washington and Tel Aviv.
The anti-government protests began on Dec 28 in the capital Tehran, when shopkeepers, merchants and small business owners staged strikes and demonstrations to protest soaring inflation, the collapsing rial and deteriorating economic conditions.
A US-based human rights group said at least 2,677 people were killed during the protests and nearly 19,100 others were detained, while Iranian authorities have yet to release an official toll.
The demonstrations have since spread to multiple cities and escalated into anti-government expressions of discontent involving workers, students and others. — Bernama-Anadolu
