In recent days, provoked by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) killing of fuel porters, a series of protests have erupted in the province of Sistan and Baluchistan. They started in Saravan but quickly spread to other cities in the province.

Protests continued in Sistan and Baluchistan

Last week, The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), and the People’s Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI / MEK Iran) reported the IRGC agents opened fire on fuel porters in the Saravan area near the Iran-Pakistan border.

There were several deaths and casualties and the angry locals responded by storming the governate an IRGC base. When news of the events spread, it resulted in locals of surrounding towns and cities protesting too.

 

 

The repressive forces opened fire on angry protesters

Even though there was a very heavy presence of IRGC forces in Saravan, the people attacked the local government. The forces opened fire on these angry protesters and there were dozens of fatalities and casualties. The people then proceeded to set the vehicles of the security forces on fire.

Protests are continuing to spread across the province with reports indicating that people from the village of Keshtegan have been holding a rally in front of the IRGC base. Once again, security forces opened fire on the protesters.

The Iranian Resistance, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), and the People’s Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI / MEK Iran) reported the has said that there have been more than a hundred people injured and more than 40 killed.

 

 

The Iranian regime has cut off the internet in Saravan

In an attempt to regain control of the situation, the Iranian regime has cut off the internet in Saravan. This is a tactic that the regime has used frequently in the past when it is worried about the threat of an uprising occurring.

Furthermore, to stop the protests from getting even larger, the regime has blocked all roads leading to Saravan.

In the province’s capital, Zahedan, protesters took to the streets to voice their alarm and anger. They too targeted the IRGC base, blocking access to it and setting IRGC vehicles alight. On Thursday, security forces opened fire on protesters but the courageous people were undeterred.

 

 

State-run media outlet

Despite the clear violence against the fuel porters and then the protesters, the Iranian regime has tried to deflect the blame from itself. The province’s prosecutor Mehdi Shamsabadi was interviewed by Mashreq News, a state-run media outlet, last week. He said that the “enemies” of the Iranian regime have been “hiding under cover of fuel carriers” and that they have been trying to “inflame the calm atmosphere of the province”. This is utter nonsense and videos of the IRGC forces opening fire and killing civilians have been widely circulated on social media.

The regime attacked and killed deprived fuel porters because of the “Razzaq” plan. It is through this plan that the IRGC plunders the porters’ low income, despite the fact that it earns $6 billion per year through the smuggling of 15 million liters of fuel on a daily basis.

Under the Razzaq plan, locals in border cities have been issued with a card for which they have to pay 5 million tomans. This card allows families to cross the border to Pakistan one single time per week to sell a 3,000-liter container of fuel. The regime then takes most of the income.

 

 

and People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran – MEK IRAN – YouTube