CNN
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Iran’s supreme leader praised the country’s Basij paramilitary force for its role in deadly persecution about anti-regime protesters.
Meet Basij staff in Tehran on Saturday, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described the popular protest movement as “rioters” and “thugs” supported by foreign forces and praised the “innocent” Basij fighters for defending the nation.
Basij is a wing of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps deployed on the streets as protests have intensified since September.
The protest movement was initially sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, 22 years old in the custody of Iran’s ethics police.
Amnesty International said Basij had been ordered to “mercilessly confront” the protesters.
“When facing the enemy on the battlefield, Basij always shows himself as a brave man who is not afraid of the enemy,” the Supreme Leader said on Saturday.
“You have seen in the most recent events that our innocent and oppressed Basiji have become the target of oppression so that they do not allow the country to become a target of rioters, thugs and guys above [enemy] wages, whether intentionally or unintentionally. They sacrificed themselves to free others,” Khamenei said.
Khamenei’s statement came a day after the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk warned Iran was in the midst of a “comprehensive human rights crisis” due to its crackdown on dissent. anti-regime.
Turk calls for “an independent, fair and transparent investigation process” into human rights abuses in Iran in a special session of the United Nations Human Rights Council on Thursday.
He told the 47-member national council in Geneva that security forces are believed to have responded to the protests by using lethal force against unarmed protesters and those bystanders who “do not pose a threat”.
According to Turk, more than 14,000 people, including children, have been arrested in connection with the protests. He said that at least 21 of them are currently facing the death penalty and six have received the death penalty.
Among those arrested were two famous Iranian actors, Hengameh Ghaziani and Katayoun Riahi. was arrested on separate occasions to publicly support the nationwide protests, according to the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
The Islamic Republic has been gripped by a wave of anti-government protests caused by the alleged death of Amini for not wearing the hijab properly.
Since then, authorities have waged a deadly crackdown on protesters, with reports of forced detention and physical abuse being used to target the Kurdish minority. of the country. in one CNN’s recent investigationSecret testimony reveals sexual violence against protesters, including boys, in Iranian detention centers since the beginning of the unrest.
According to Turk, an unprecedented nationwide uprising has taken place in more than 150 cities and 140 universities in all 31 provinces of Iran.
The violent reaction of Iranian security forces to the protesters has shaken diplomatic relations between Tehran and Western leaders.
The White House on Wednesday imposed the latest round of sanctions on three officials in Iran’s Kurdish region, after US Secretary Antony Blinken said he was “very concerned that the Iranian regime is believed to be climbing scale of violence against protesters.”
In an interview with Indian broadcaster NDTV on Thursday, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani said foreign forces are meddling in Iran’s internal affairs and creating “storylines”. sophisticated”.
