Iran Protests Enter Third Month with Deadly Clashes

Smoke rises during a protest after authorities raised fuel prices, in the central city of Isfahan, Iran, November 16, 2019. (AP)
Smoke rises during a protest after authorities raised fuel prices, in the central city of Isfahan, Iran, November 16, 2019. (AP)
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Iran Protests Enter Third Month with Deadly Clashes

Smoke rises during a protest after authorities raised fuel prices, in the central city of Isfahan, Iran, November 16, 2019. (AP)
Smoke rises during a protest after authorities raised fuel prices, in the central city of Isfahan, Iran, November 16, 2019. (AP)

Iran issued a series of death sentences as women-led protests over Mahsa Amini's death in custody entered a third month Wednesday, with clashes reportedly claiming at least seven lives in two days.

That toll did not include six people authorities said were killed by gunmen who attacked protesters and police later Wednesday in the southwestern province of Khuzestan.

Street violence raged across Iran as protests sparked by the September 16 death of Amini intensified on the anniversary of a lethal 2019 crackdown.

Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian woman of Kurdish origin, died in the custody of the notorious morality police after her arrest for an alleged breach of Iran's strict dress code for women.

"We'll fight! We'll die! We'll take back Iran!" a crowd of protesters could be heard chanting on a Tehran street, in a video published by the 1500tasvir social media monitor.

In a widely shared video verified by AFP, security forces appear to open fire on dozens of commuters at a Tehran metro station, causing them to scramble and fall over each other on the platform.

Another verified video showed members of the security forces, including plainclothes officers, attacking women without hijab headscarves on an underground train.

Organisers of the protests have called for three days of actions to commemorate hundreds killed in the "Bloody Aban" -- or Bloody November -- demonstrations that erupted on November 15, 2019, after a shock decision to hike fuel prices.

The anniversary gave new momentum to the Amini protests, which have seen women burn their headscarves and confront security forces on the streets.

- 'Guards killed' -
State media said "rioters" -- a term Iranian officials use to describe protesters -- killed two members of the Revolutionary Guards and a member of its Basij paramilitary force on Tuesday.

One guard was shot dead in Bukan, a city in Amini's home province of Kurdistan, and another was gunned down in Kamyaran, a Kurdish-majority city in West Azerbaijan province, the official IRNA news agency reported.

The Basij member died after being hit by a Molotov cocktail in the southern city of Shiraz, it added.

A protester was killed on Wednesday in front of the house of one of three demonstrators shot dead the day before by the security forces in Kurdistan province, Oslo-based rights group Hengaw said.

The death of Burhan Karmi occurred in Kamyaran, where tensions were high for the funeral of mobile phone repair shop owner Fuad Mohammadi, the rights group said.

"Brother Fuad is a hero, the martyr of Kurdistan," crowds of mourners chanted, in videos posted on social media.

Special forces also opened fire on students Wednesday after entering Kurdistan University in the flashpoint western city of Sanandaj, Hengaw said.

Security forces have killed at least 342 people, including 43 children and 26 women, in the crackdown since Amini's death, according to the latest toll released by Iran Human Rights (IHR) on Wednesday.

The rights group also said at least 15,000 people have been arrested -- a figure the Iranian authorities deny.

Later on Wednesday, "armed and terrorist elements" on two motorcycles opened fire on protesters and security forces at a central market in the city of Izeh in Khuzestan, IRNA said. It said five people were killed and at least 10 wounded, adding later another victim had died in hospital.

Valiollah Hayati, the deputy governor of Khuzestan, said the fatalities included three men, a woman and a girl, while some of the wounded were in serious condition.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. IRNA reported three people tied to the "incidents and riots" in Izeh had been arrested.



Trump to Attend Ceremony to Witness Return of US Personnel Killed in Syria

US President Donald Trump speaks to the media - Reuters
US President Donald Trump speaks to the media - Reuters
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Trump to Attend Ceremony to Witness Return of US Personnel Killed in Syria

US President Donald Trump speaks to the media - Reuters
US President Donald Trump speaks to the media - Reuters

US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump will attend a ceremony on Wednesday to honor US personnel killed in Syria over the weekend by a suspected ISIS attacker.

Trump and his wife will travel to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to be present for what the Air Force calls the "dignified transfer" of the bodies from overseas back into the United States in the presence of their families. The ceremony is scheduled to take place at 1:15 p.m. EST (1815 GMT), Reuters reported.

Two US Army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed on Saturday in the central Syrian town of Palmyra by an attacker who targeted a convoy of American and Syrian forces before being shot dead, according to the U.S. military.

Trump called the incident terrible, vowed retaliation and referred to the three that were slain as "great patriots."

Three US soldiers were also wounded in the attack.

US presidents, vice presidents and dignitaries regularly attend the solemn transfer ceremonies at Dover during times of war or conflict that result in the deaths of US troops. Flag-draped transfer cases are brought off of a military plane with the bodies of the fallen and put with precision in an awaiting vehicle as officials and family members watch and often weep.


Putin Says Russia will Achieve War Goals, Keep Expanding 'Buffer Zone'

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Kazbek Kokov, head of the North Caucasus region of Kabardino-Balkaria, in Moscow, Russia December 16, 2025. Sputnik/Mikhail Metzel/Pool via REUTERS
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Kazbek Kokov, head of the North Caucasus region of Kabardino-Balkaria, in Moscow, Russia December 16, 2025. Sputnik/Mikhail Metzel/Pool via REUTERS
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Putin Says Russia will Achieve War Goals, Keep Expanding 'Buffer Zone'

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Kazbek Kokov, head of the North Caucasus region of Kabardino-Balkaria, in Moscow, Russia December 16, 2025. Sputnik/Mikhail Metzel/Pool via REUTERS
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Kazbek Kokov, head of the North Caucasus region of Kabardino-Balkaria, in Moscow, Russia December 16, 2025. Sputnik/Mikhail Metzel/Pool via REUTERS

President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia would achieve its goals in Ukraine by diplomatic or military means, and would seek to expand a "security buffer zone" there.

"First, the goals of the special military operation will undoubtedly be achieved. We would prefer to do this and address the root causes of the conflict through diplomacy," Putin said.

"If the opposing side and their foreign patrons refuse to engage in substantive discussions, Russia will achieve the liberation of its historical lands by military means. The task of creating and expanding a security buffer zone will also be consistently addressed."

Of the regions of Ukraine that Russia has claimed as its own territory, it currently controls Crimea, around 90% of the Donbas region and 75% of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, Reuters reported.

In addition, Russia holds some territory in the adjoining regions of Kharkiv, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk and Mykolaiv. Putin's comments signalled that Moscow would seek further gains on some of these fronts.

With the war at a key juncture as US President Donald Trump pushes hard for a quick peace agreement, Putin said Russia was advancing on all fronts.

But his defense minister, Andrei Belousov, acknowledged that Ukrainian forces were trying to take back control of the northeastern town of Kupiansk - an effort he said was not succeeding.

Ukraine said on Wednesday it had taken 90% of the town, which Russia said it had captured in November.

Putin said people in Europe were being indoctrinated with fears of a war with Russia, and accused their leaders of whipping up hysteria.

"I have repeatedly stated: this is a lie, nonsense, pure nonsense about some imaginary Russian threat to European countries. But this is being done quite deliberately," he said.

Putin has said Russia is not seeking war with Europe, but is ready for war if that is Europe's choice.


Pakistan Says ‘Hostile Countries’ behind False Online Claims Linking it to Australia Shootings

A man waves Pakistan's flag as he along with others gather in support of Pakistan Army, day after the ceasefire announcement between India and Pakistan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, May 11, 2025. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
A man waves Pakistan's flag as he along with others gather in support of Pakistan Army, day after the ceasefire announcement between India and Pakistan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, May 11, 2025. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
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Pakistan Says ‘Hostile Countries’ behind False Online Claims Linking it to Australia Shootings

A man waves Pakistan's flag as he along with others gather in support of Pakistan Army, day after the ceasefire announcement between India and Pakistan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, May 11, 2025. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
A man waves Pakistan's flag as he along with others gather in support of Pakistan Army, day after the ceasefire announcement between India and Pakistan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, May 11, 2025. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro

Pakistan’s information minister said Wednesday that his country has been the victim of a coordinated online disinformation campaign following the mass shooting at Australia’s Bondi Beach.

Attaullah Tarar accused “hostile countries,” including India, of spreading false claims that one of the two attackers was a Pakistani national.

Speaking at a news conference in Islamabad, Tara said Pakistan's leadership strongly condemned Sunday's attack, which killed 15 people in an antisemitic shooting targeting Jews celebrating Hanukkah, The AP news reported.

The minister said misleading information began circulating almost immediately after the attack, with social media posts falsely identifying one of the suspects as a Pakistani national named Naveed Akram. He said the claims spread rapidly across digital platforms and were repeated by some media outlets without verification.

Tarar said subsequent findings, including confirmation by Indian police, established that one of the attackers, Sajid Akram, was from India, while his 24-year-old son, Naveed Akram — who was also involved — was born in Australia.

The minister said the misinformation appeared to stem from a case of mistaken identity, as a Pakistani man living in Sydney shares the same name as one of the two suspects.

“How do we restore the situation to where it was before the Bondi Beach attack?” Tarar asked, adding that the Pakistani man — also named Naveed Akram — had released a video denying any involvement and urging the public not to associate him with the attack.

Tara said the Pakistani man was “a victim of a malicious and organized campaign” and that the disinformation effort originated in India.

There was no immediate response from Indian officials.

Tarar called on media outlets that published the false reports to issue apologies and said Pakistan had not yet decided whether to pursue legal action.

Pakistan and India, nuclear-armed rivals, have a long history of strained relations and have fought three wars since gaining independence from British rule in 1947, most of them over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. The two sides came close to war in May before US President Donald Trump brokered a ceasefire.