– Iranian team refuses to sing national anthem at Football World Cup
– Iraq strongly denounces Iranian military action against Kurds
Dubai/Doha/Baghdad: The protests against the forced hijab in Iran, continuing for 67 consecutive days, have started to gain international support. The Iranian team participating in the ongoing football World Cup in Qatar supported the protests by remaining silent while the country’s national anthem was being played. This has been noticed at the international level, and human rights organisations and other institutions have demanded that action be taken against the regime of Iran, which killed 426 people. But ignoring these accusations, Iran has intensified its crackdown on protesters. There are reports of attacks on Kurdish positions in Iraq, as in Iran, by the Revolutionary Guards.

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The protests that have been going on in Iran for the past nine weeks were gaining support from Iranian citizens who have taken refuge in the US and European countries. Iran had declared these foreign nationals’ rebels and had accused western countries of hatching a big conspiracy against Iran. But in the last fortnight, incidents have surfaced of Iranian sportspersons starting to support the ongoing protests in their country in various international competitions. The silent protests of the Iranian team in the biggest tournament, like the ongoing football World Cup in Qatar, turned out to attract the world’s attention.

During this match, the Iranian fans in the stadium also expressed their displeasure against the regime in Iran, like their team, by remaining silent while the national anthem was being played. A few days ago, Iranian basketball players and swimmers took a similar stance in international competitions. But protests by Iranian players in the biggest tournament like FIFA Football World Cup are becoming a topic of discussion. Simultaneously, the shocking reports of the actions taken by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards on the protesters have also started to emerge.

Two days ago, the Revolutionary Guards fired indiscriminately with machine guns at protesters in the Kurdish-populated town of Javanrud in Iran. It is claimed that five to seven protesters were killed. Locals have accused the Revolutionary Guards of shooting protesters in the head and chest. Many protesters were injured in this firing and have been treated at home. Locals fear that the Revolutionary Guards will pick them up and kill them if they are admitted to the hospital.

In the last 24 hours, the Revolutionary Guards have also launched attacks on Kurdish positions in Iraq. A few years ago, Kurdish leaders who fled Iran had taken refuge in the northern region of Iraq. It was here that these Iranian Kurdish leaders founded the party ‘Komla Party of Iranian Kurdistan’ and started its headquarters. The Revolutionary Guards had attacked these headquarters. The information about the loss of life has not been disclosed therein. But the government of Iraq has expressed strong anger over this attack by Iran.

Meanwhile, these protests, which started in the Kurdish region of Iran two months ago, have now reached every corner of Iran. Iran has termed the protesters’ rioters and accused them of being supported by the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Also, the government of Iran has claimed that there is no threat to the system in Iran due to these demonstrations. But international analysts have pointed out that the Iranian government has failed to stop the protests that have continued for nine consecutive weeks.

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