Tight Security Measures in Iranian Kurdistan, Raisi Pushes for Calm

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi surrounded by guards in a market in the city of Sanandaj on Thursday (Iranian Presidency)
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi surrounded by guards in a market in the city of Sanandaj on Thursday (Iranian Presidency)
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Tight Security Measures in Iranian Kurdistan, Raisi Pushes for Calm

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi surrounded by guards in a market in the city of Sanandaj on Thursday (Iranian Presidency)
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi surrounded by guards in a market in the city of Sanandaj on Thursday (Iranian Presidency)

As the twelfth week of Iranian protests approaches, President Ebrahim Raisi headed on Thursday to the capital of Kurdistan Province, Sanandaj, amid tight security measures in the city that has become the cradle of demonstrations in the west of Iran.

“During the recent riots, the enemies miscalculated in believing that they could cause chaos, insecurity, and riots,” said Raisi on the sidelines of his inauguration of a water supply project in Sanandaj.

“People are facing economic and social problems, but they know how to face the enemy with their solidarity,” added the president.

Raisi pledged that Kurdistan province would be a “major” destination for his upcoming visits.

Since September 17, the region has been rocked by more than 100 deaths during authorities’ crackdown to quell the protests sparked by the death of a young Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, who died in police custody.

Rage over Amini’s death turned into a popular uprising by Iranians from all walks of life, posing one of the most daring challenges to the ruling establishment since the 1979 revolution.

At least 459 protesters have been killed so far by security forces during the unrest in Iran, including 64 minors, according to the activist HRANA news agency.

The agency said that it is closely monitoring human rights violations in Iran. At least 18,195 individuals have been arrested in 157 cities and 143 universities that were stormed by anti-regime protests.

Raisi did not mention sending reinforcements from the Revolutionary Guard ground forces to Kurdish areas, but he said: “In Kurdistan, we stood against the counter-revolutionary groups. They tried to find a foothold for themselves, but the people of Kurdistan thwarted their efforts.”

“The brutality and cruelty of those behind the riots reminds us of the behavior of (ISIS),” the state-run ISNA news agency quoted Raisi as telling the family of one of the security forces killed in the protests.



EU Sanctions Iranian Individuals Accused of Targeting Dissidents

European Union flags fly outside the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium November 8, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
European Union flags fly outside the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium November 8, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
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EU Sanctions Iranian Individuals Accused of Targeting Dissidents

European Union flags fly outside the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium November 8, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
European Union flags fly outside the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium November 8, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

The EU has imposed sanctions on eight people and one entity responsible for the targeting of Iranian dissidents for assassination on behalf of Iran's government, the European Council said in a statement on Tuesday.

The sanctions, over what it called "serious human rights violations" and "transnational repression", included asset freezes and travel bans, the council said.

The Council listed the Zindashti Network, which it said was a criminal group uconnected to the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security that has carried out numerous acts of transnational repression, including assassinations of Iranian dissidents, Reuters reported.

It also included the Zindashti Network's boss Naji Ibrahim Sharifi-Zindashti - who it said was an Iranian narcotics trafficker and organised crime boss - and some of his associates. Zindashti and his network have previously been sanctioned by the United States.

The Council, the European Union's governing body, is also targeting Mohammed Ansari, the leader of the Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force Unit 840, who it said ordered the assassination of journalists critical of the Iran.

It said that the listings confirmed the EU’s concerns about transnational repression by Iranian state bodies through the use of proxy agents, in particular involving criminals and organised crime networks targeting dissidents and human rights defenders across the world, including on EU territory.