Ominous signs emerged on Wednesday that the Iranian government may be preparing to crackdown on nationwide protests, as it began disrupting internet services.
Iranians have taken to the streets once again in the capital Tehran and most major cities including Orumieh in the northwestern province of the same name, Gonbad-e Kavous in northern Golestan Province, Kermanshah, capital of a province of the same name in western Iran, and Amol in northern Mazandaran.
Protests have also been reported for the first time from the southern, working-class areas in the south of the capital such as Pakdasht and Eslam Shahr, some other major cities such as Zahedan, capital of the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan; Semnan, capital of a central province of the same name; Ardabil, capital of northwestern Ardabil Province; Sirjan, a city of around 325,000 in southern Kerman Province; and Marand, in East Azarbaijan Province.
People have also been protesting in many smaller and remote towns across the country including the Qeshm Island in the Persian Gulf.
In Noshahr, a port city in the Caspian Sea area, at least four security forces vehicles were torched by protesters early Wednesday evening.
Social media reports trickling slowly from Iran say mobile Internet has completely been cut off in the central areas of the capital Tehran where thousands protested in the past two nights, as well as some other cities including Karaj, Saqqez, Kermanshah, Sanandaj, and Orumieh where protests have also taken place.
Around 90 percent of Iranians use mobile internet rather than broadband. According to government figures, there are 10.6 million broadband and 84.1 million mobile internet subscribers.
Telecommunications Minister Isa Zare’i had earlier Monday said security bodies may slow down the internet speed “due to security considerations” and said this was “normal”.
Disruption in mobile internet may prevent or delay news and footage of protests tonight from reaching the Iranian people and the outside world. It may also be an indication of plans to use more violence against protesters to end the protests that have now spread to most major cities as well as some smaller ones and many universities. This is a tactic the Iranian government has used during unrest in the past.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei delivered a speech today to military commanders but completely ignored any mention of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, the young woman whose death in custody of morality police has sparked the protests across the country since Friday.
At least six people have been shot dead by security forces and many have been arrested in the past four days. Younger Iranians, especially younger women, have rallied in several major universities, and appear to be the driving force of the protests. Young women have taken unprecedented steps in many places, such as removing their headscarves on campuses which could lead to their expulsion. Many women also burned their headscarves on the streets.
Below is a continuous update of developments from across Iran until midnight local time.
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Global internet watchdog NetBlocks says Iran is now subject to the most severe internet restrictions since November 2019. Mobile networks have been shut down, there are regional disruptions. Instagram and Whatsapp have been restricted.
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Wednesday evening - Protesters chanting in Bojnord, capital of northeastern North Khorasan Province.
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LONDON, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Britain is extremely concerned at reports of serious mistreatment by Iranian security forces of a 22-year-old woman whose death last week has sparked unrest in the country, British foreign office minister Tariq Ahmad said on Wednesday. Read full story
"We urge the Iranian government to investigate the circumstances of her death with rigour and transparency, and to hold to account anyone responsible," Ahmad said.
"We call on Iran to respect the right to peaceful assembly, to exercise restraint and to release unfairly detained protesters."
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Security forces are firing at protesters in Boukan, a city of around 200,000 in West Azarbaijan.
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21:30 local time - Some social media users from Tehran report that their mobile internet providers are directing them to the National Information Network (NIN), a highly controlled intranet, to prevent uploading images from protests to social media. NIN stops anti-filtering software and VPNs used for access to blocked social media and websites.
Global Internet watchdog NetBlocks has confirmed that Iran has restricted the WhatsApp messaging application amid widening protests. “Metrics show WhatsApp servers now disrupted on multiple internet providers, hours after the restriction of Instagram,” NetBlocks tweeted.
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Protesters chanting “Down with the Dictator” in Shahin Shahr, a city of around 180,000 in Esfahan Province.Protesters chanting “Down with the Dictator” in Shahin Shahr, a city of around 180,000 in Esfahan Province.
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Security forces are firing at protesters in Garmssar, a city of around 50,000 in the central Semnan Province.
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Wednesday evening - Protests have spread across Tehran: There are reports of protests in the eastern district of Nezamabad, western district of Sadeghiyeh, northern district of Tajrish.
The video in this tweet shows protests in Tajrish, Tehran
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