General Amir-Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the aerospace division of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), spoke of at least 300 deaths in a speech, according to a video posted on Tabnak’s online portal on Tuesday. He also mentioned martyrs – that is, killed security forces and police officers. The Revolutionary Guard is the elite unit of the armed forces in Iran and is more important than the traditional army.
Human rights activists in particular have so far documented the number of fatalities. For example, the US-based organization Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) estimated at least 450 protesters were killed as a result of the suppression of the protests, including 64 children. In addition, 60 security forces were reported to have been killed.
US and Germany blamed it
Commander Hajizadeh again blamed Iran’s enemies for the protests. In addition to the US, he also mentioned Germany and France. In recent weeks, the military and politicians have already shifted the blame to other countries. Observers see this as an attempt to distract from the real causes of the protests.
The trigger for the mass protests against the system of the Islamic Republic was the death of the Iranian Kurd Jina Mahsa Amini in mid-September. She died in police custody after being arrested for violating Islamic dress codes. (SDA)