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Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on Wednesday that the Iranian people deserved a change of leadership, describing Tehran as oppressive and accusing it of widespread abuses.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Herzog said: “The Iranian people are yearning for change. The Iranian people deserve change. They deserve a decent life.”
He added: “The Iranian people live under a very oppressive regime. A regime which has mowed thousands of its citizens and is torturing and is jailing and is destroying thousands of families, perhaps tens of thousands, perhaps much more all around Iran.”
Herzog said the authorities were trying to suppress what he described as basic human demands.
“They are trying to crush the natural demand of human beings for better life and for freedom,” he said.
He said he hoped Iran would undergo political change.
“I sincerely hope and pray that there will be a change in Iran because Iran deserves better, the region deserves better, the world deserves better,” Herzog said.
He said Iranians were suffering from shortages and economic hardship.
“The people are suffering tremendously. There’s shortage of food and water and so many other basic needs. The economy is in shambles,” he said.
Herzog added: “The future for the Iranian people can only be in a regime change,” saying this should ultimately be decided by Iranians themselves with international support.
“That has to be, at the end, within the realms of the Iranian people and the international community and its support,” he said.
He also said: “It’s clear to me that the Ayatollah is in quite a fragile situation.”
Mai Sato said earlier this week that civilian deaths were estimated at 5,000 or more, adding that medical reports suggested the toll could be far higher, at about 20,000 or more.
The US-based Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA) said it has verified 4,902 deaths since unrest erupted in late December and is reviewing a further 9,387 suspected fatalities, while more than 26,000 people have been arrested, according to a statement on its website.
Iran’s National Security Council on Wednesday issued its first official toll, reporting 3,117 deaths, including 2,427 described as “innocent,” among them members of the security forces, without providing a civilian breakdown.
Iran International reported earlier this month that more than 12,000 people were killed during the crackdown largely on January 8 and 9.
