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Iran’s rulers have unleashed a brutal crackdown of arrests and death threats against would-be protestors and those suspected of working with foreign entities to curb an uprising, according to reports.
Despite the weakening of Iranian police, the paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and the Basij militia by US and Israeli strikes — including Israel’s killing of the head of the Basij, Gholamreza Soleimani — security forces are still suppressing domestic dissent, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Armed plainclothes men with covered faces have been riding around on motorcycles, wielding their weapons to intimidate Iranians, and have set up a network of security checkpoints in Tehran to search cars, the outlet reported.
At least 500 people have been arrested since the start of the war and have been accused of sharing information with the media or enemy forces, the Commander of Iran’s police force, Ahmad-Reza Radan, announced on Sunday, per the outlet.
Several people were detained for simply taking photos and videos of airstrikes in the region. Police have also killed at least 11 people after they were accused of being monarchists — or supporters of the exiled son of Iran’s last shah.
Security officials have been threatening would-be protesters through terrifying television broadcasts and text messages, ordering that there is a shoot-to-kill order for any dissent, the outlet said.
One text message reviewed by the Journal and sent by the Revolutionary Guard over the weekend warned that rioters could face a “stronger blow than January 8,” in reference to mass killings of protesters in the Islamic state before the war broke out.
A continued near-total internet blackout has complicated communication and mobilization of protests. Many residents of Tehran are terrified to leave their homes due to the heavy security presence and possible persecution, the outlet reported.
In a video statement, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that targeted strikes on terror operatives have taken place to “enable the brave people of Iran” to celebrate the “Festival of Fire,” which is a celebration on the eve of the last Wednesday before Nowruz, or the Persian New Year.
“I’m here with Israel’s Defense Minister, our Chief of Staff, the head of the Mossad, the Chief of Air Force, our senior commanders. In the past 24 hours, we knocked out two of the terrorist chieftains, the top terrorist chieftains of this tyranny,” Netanyahu said on Tuesday from the Air Force command center at the Kirya.
“Our aircraft are hitting the terror operatives on the grounds, in the crossroads, in the city squares. This is meant to enable the brave people of Iran to celebrate the Festival of Fire,” Netanyahu added.
“So celebrate and Happy Nowruz. We’re watching from above.”
Mike Nelson, a retired Special Forces lieutenant colonel, told NewsNation that Israel’s killing of Soleimani, Iran’s security chief responsible for suppressing protests, during airstrikes on Tuesday could signal the nation’s “intent to nudge an uprising.”
The removal of Soleimani could be “part of an overall leadership target list, but if the strikes start targeting Basij in a larger way, it could suggest the intent to nudge an uprising,” Nelson, who has experience at the US Central Command, continued.
“By targeting the militia that would put down domestic upheaval. They might be trying to make the conditions for an uprising more favorable.”
English (US)