Artist: Ahmad Barakizadeh
By Kayhan Life Staff
Protests erupted across Iran as students, steelworkers, and nurses took to the streets, voicing their anger with the Islamic Republic in cities such as Tehran, Bushehr, Qazvin, Gilan, Dehdasht, and Yasouj.
Protesters in the southwestern cities of Dehdasht and Yasouj chanted slogans, including “Death to the Islamic Republic,” for several consecutive nights. Medical staff in Tehran and the northeastern holy city of Mashhad went on strike, demanding better wages. Workers in the port city of Bushehr protested a “layoff plan” and overdue salaries. Football fans exited a match chanting, “Reza Shah, may your soul rest in peace.”
The regime’s mismanagement and widespread corruption have resulted in hyperinflation, soaring unemployment, and a collapsing currency. In six months, the national currency has lost 50 percent of its value. Many minimum-wage earners struggle to meet basic needs, and 27 percent of the population lives on just $2 a day.
During Prince Reza Pahlavi’s visit to Europe, many expatriates gathered in Munich and Geneva, displaying the Sun and Lion flag of Iran and the flags of Israel and the United States, signaling a desire for peace and coexistence.
