Here are interesting Twitter threads on the current protests in Iran that I would like to share.
2. Lots of unrest in Iran's Kurdish areas. About 10% of Iran's population are Kurds, around half of whom are Sunni not Shia. Kurds are culturally v close to Persians–better assimilated in Iran than Turkey or Iraq–but have felt economic neglect and repression for decades pic.twitter.com/qIYbP9bJkH
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
3. The regime brutally crushed a Kurdish rebellion after the revolution. Around 10k people were killed, including 1500 political prisoners. This is a haunting image of that period, 11 men convicted of being "counterrevolutionary" by Ayatollah Khomeini, death by firing squad pic.twitter.com/ywLr8z2Bwc
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
5. Incidentally, the photographer of this now iconic image–Jahangir Razmi–was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 1980, but he was too fearful to claim credit for it until 2006. Here's a story about him: https://t.co/xXbR3tYT7N pic.twitter.com/mToMRg64xH
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
7. Khuzestan is also home to Iran's disenfranchised Arab minority population–around 2 million people–some of whom are Sunni. Further protests here which disrupt Iran's oil production are v worrisome to the regime. Oil strikes helped bring down the Shah https://t.co/TxhXwR9qHQ
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
8. So far, it's notable that none of the protest slogans among Iranian Kurds and Arabs have reflected ethnic separatist aspirations. This may change if the regime cracks down on them too violently as "US/Saudi/Zionist agents".
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
9. If Iran's territorial integrity appears in question–we're v far from that now–these protests could start to lose popular support even from regime opponents. The Islamic Republic may try play this nationalism card, i.e. "Accept us, or risk Iran's territorial unraveling"
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
10. The Iranian government faces some difficult choices. Quelling large crowds in Tehran may actually be easier than putting out dozens of smaller fires in distant provinces, especially when their forces/resources have already stretched bc of battles in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, etc.
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
The map is correct. Much of the uprising is centered around Arab and Kurdish inhabited areas in western Iran- e.g. Izeh, Kermanshah, Sanandaj etc.
— Alireza Nader (@AlirezaNader) January 3, 2018
The single most constructive way the US government can be helpful in #IranProtests is to inhibit Tehran's ability to black out information and control communication. They repress much easier in the dark. Meanwhile @jzarif uses @twitter to communicate freely with the world https://t.co/vgFhyS5ixM
— Karim Sadjadpour (@ksadjadpour) January 3, 2018
@ksadjadpour senior fellow at the Carnegie endowment for International Peace in Washington on Iran protests: "We have to be sceptical about what senior authorities say" pic.twitter.com/u8FLv4GPZf
— Yalda Hakim (@BBCYaldaHakim) January 3, 2018
My Thread on #IranProtests :
Buckle up, It will be a long thread.— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
2. absolute monarchy. The irony is that the same coalition under the banner of political correctness is now a powerful force in political arena in the West itself. Before the revolution, Iran was a constitutional Monarchy, yet in reality it was ruled as an absolute monarchy under
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
4. The economic growth was skyrocketing during his reign. Yet the country lacked a major western element, Democracy, and in my view this was a major factor in Shah's unsuccessful response to the danger of Islamist-leftist coalition.
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
5. As an immediate impact of its victory, Islamic revolution of 1979 became a source of inspiration for radical Islamic groups all over the Middle East as it was the first time in history that since its manifestation in 1929 (birth of Muslim Brotherhood),
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
6. ), <modern> Islamic extremist ideology had gained power in a major country in Middle East. But this wasn’t limited to inspiration only. In fact it was (and is) much deeper than that.
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
7. Despite being Shia, the leaders of the Islamic revolution have ideological as well as practical ties with Sunni fundamentalist groups. The current leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, had translated two books of Sayyid Qutb an ardent anti-western figure of the Muslim Brotherhood.
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
9. Hamas the famous jihadist group in Palestine which is backed by Iran’s revolutionary leaders is a local branch of Muslim Brotherhood. Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ), another group backed by Iran used to be a faction of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Guess what! Ayman al-Zawahiri,
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
11. <Iran a culture of continues defiance>
Iranians are the main victim of Islamic regimes ideology of hate and terror. After the victory of 1979 revolution the new regime murdered tens of thousands of political opponents its climax was massacre of more than 3000 political— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
13. The Islamic regime imposed Sharia law on all Iranians, stripped women from their basic rights, established religious police to persecute and intimidate anybody who do not follow their barbaric code: including mandatory veil for women, drinking alcohol, even dancing and
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
14. listening to music. I can vividly remember armed beardo men attacked a wedding just because they considered the ceremony un-Islamic, and I was around 6 at that time.
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
17. the new revolution going on in Iran. Her picture is an ultimate illustration of defiance of Iranian people. We don’t know her name yet, let’s call her <Iranian angle of freedom>
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
19. There are different reasons why MSM acts in this way, they hate @POTUS so much they just want to attack him, there are many corrupted correspondents have ties with Islamic regime etc. But I think there is a deeper reason. Western Media are now just echo chamber of
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
20. leftist ideologues. They don’t care about the truth or in the business of spreading the news. They just reflect their ideology as truth. And in their politically correct ideology the main villain in the world is west and of course western values. They neglect truth,
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
21. skew reality and forge lies to sell their ideology as truth to the world, hence Fake News Media. What is happening in Iran is totally destroying their Ideology, they can’t stand Middle Easterns who are craving western values,
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
23. <What should west do?>
What is astonishing to me is these days Obama administration officials and their Fake News Propaganda tool ask President Trump to be quiet about the ongoing revolution in Iran. This lectures come from an administration that in 2009 while— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
24. people of Iran were killed on the streets of Iran abandoned them just to secure a deal with Mullas, also because of their inaction half a million Syrian slaughtered by Assad regime.
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
25. Freedom fighters in every country need the help of free world. Iran is no exception as well. Also in the case of Iran something profound is happening. If we want to defeat Islamic terrorism we need to attack the heart of it: Islamic terrorist ideology.
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
26. The young people of Middle East are the only tool that we can achieve this goal. Listen to the chants of Iranians on the street of Tehran, then making the right decision is a piece of cake.
The end.
— آميرزا بيژن (@Amirzabijan) January 3, 2018
Text messages to govt employees ordering participation in pro govt rally. #IranProtests #تظاهرات_سراسرى_ pic.twitter.com/J0hyluajBP
— Farnaz Fassihi (@farnazfassihi) January 3, 2018
#Iran former government spokesperson to regime:
What are these lies? Which enemy? These are our youth. They are fed up with being ignored, of unemployment, despair, poverty, lack of future & bias.
#IranProtests https://t.co/oprlNblZbw— Farnaz Fassihi (@farnazfassihi) January 3, 2018
I took this photo in Tehran a year ago as the giant posters of the Ayatollah were being put up all across the city for Revolution day. Now I'm watching videos of those same posters be ripped downed and burned by some of the bravest people I have ever seen. #FreeIran #IranProtests pic.twitter.com/wGk5aMOhWA
— Annika H Rothstein (@truthandfiction) January 3, 2018
Iran's Tasnim "news agency" @Tasnimnews_EN affiliated with the repressive IRGC, is posting pictures of protesters and calling on followers to identify them. Some Iranians are calling on @twitter to take action. #Iranprotests (deleted previous tweet to remove pix of protesters)
— Golnaz Esfandiari (@GEsfandiari) January 3, 2018
URGENT NEWS: Massive protests start minutes ago in Vali Asr square in city centre of the capital #Tehran against – Day 7 #Iranprotests #FreeIran #Regimechange pic.twitter.com/lU2qsUmLUr
— Hossein Abedini (@HoAbedini) January 3, 2018
I had enough of cliches like “we should remain quiet on #IranProtests so as not give the regime excuses”
The naivety of such logic ignores how the Mullahs are masters of inventing excuses to oppress their own people and they will blame Israel and Saudi Arabia regardless! #Iran— Nervana Mahmoud (@Nervana_1) January 2, 2018
The Mullahs have wasted Iran’s wealth on Hezbollah, Assad, and many other Shia militias, while their own people are struggling to live a decent life.#IranProtests https://t.co/BNJo9sCzXE
— Nervana Mahmoud (@Nervana_1) January 2, 2018
#AlJazeera covered protests in #Egypt even when less than hundred gathered in Cairo’s tiny allays. Now remarkably mute on #IranProtests
— Nervana Mahmoud (@Nervana_1) December 31, 2017
Nervana 