Tag: Susangard

Khuzestan Protests: 102 Detained and 10 are said to be Killed, HRANA can only Confirm 5

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Environment, Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
ahvaz, Elhayi, hamidiyeh, khorramshahr, Khuzestan, Khuzestan province, Khuzestan water crisis, Khuzestan water shortages, Ramshir, Shavur, Susangard, Susangerd

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, several people have been killed, dozens injured, and hundreds more arrested in the last week in relation to protests in Khuzestan. HRANA has been able to identify 102 detained in cities in Khuzestan, 3 detained in Tehran in support of the people of Khuzestan, and 10 are said to have been killed, 5 of whom HRANA has confirmed so far. Names follow.

Widespread protests started in Khuzestan province on the night of Thursday, July 15, in response to the resource mismanagement that has led to the water crisis. Protests have been going for the past seven days and have spread to at least 30 cities.

HRANA has received videos showing the heavy presence of security forces and special forces vehicles in a number of cities in Khuzestan province, including Izeh and Masjed Soleiman.

Citizens in cities such as Meybod in Yazd province and Robat Karim around Tehran have rallied in support of the Khuzestan protesters.

Meanwhile, cities in Khuzestan Province are experiencing a severe decrease in internet speed and connection. The global internet watchdog website “Netblocks” earlier confirmed the internet disruptions since the protests took place in Khuzestan saying that “widespread Internet disruptions in Iran have occurred since Thursday last week following popular protests in Khuzestan province and it continues.”

Today, the Deputy Commander of the Lorestan Police confirmed that a young man was killed and seven others were injured in a shooting during last night’s protests in Aligudarz.

Detention of hundreds of protesting citizens

HRANA has received several reports pointing to the detention of hundreds of people, but verifying the identities of all detainees has been difficult due to the lack of transparency in reports from Iran’s official authorities, and the Islamic republic of Iran does not allow human rights organizations operate inside Iran. However, HRANA was able to identify 102 detained in Khuzestan and 3 in Tehran, and while reportedly 10 have been killed, HRANA has verified the identities of 5, as follows:

Identity of 10 killed citizens:

1- Mostafa Naeemawi – killed on July 16 at Shadegan – Status: Verified by HRANA

2- Ghasem Naseri (Khaziri) – was wounded on July 16 and died on July 17 at Kut Abdollah – Status: Verified by HRANA

3- Meysam Echrash – was wounded on July 18 and died on July 21 Karkhe – Status: Verified by HRANA

4- Hadi Bahmani – was killed on 21-Jul at Izeh – Status: Verified by Hrana

5- Omid Azarkhosh – was killed on 22-Jul at ` Aligudarz – Status: Verified by HRANA

6- Amir Moshari (Ebadi)– from Mahshahr– Status: Status: under review

7- Isaa Baledi – from Taleghani town in Mahshahr – Status: under review

8- Mohammad Chenani –from Shush – Status: under review

9- Hamzeh (Farzad Farisat) – from Ahvaz – Status: under review

10- Hamid Mojaddam (Jokari) – from Mahshahr – Status: under review

 

HRANA has been able to verify the names of 105 arrested citizens in different cities as are listed below.

People arrested in the city of Ahvaz:

1 – Mohammad Koroshat – Arrested on date not specified

2 – Abas Zargani – Arrested on July 21

3 – Abbas Savari – Arrested on date not specified

4 – Ahmad Savari – Arrested on July 20

5 – Ali Ka’b Alhaei – Arrested on July 20

6 – Amer Zuhairi – Arrested on July 17

7 – Basem Zargani – Arrested on July 21

8 – Basem Heydari – Arrested on date not specified

9 – Fahd Heydari – Arrested on July 21

10 – Fallah Chaldavi – Arrested on July 21

11 – Hamoud Chenani – Arrested on July 17

12 – Hamoud Shamousi – Arrested on July 17

13 – Hassan Saeedi – Arrested on date not specified

14 – Isa Mazra’eh – Arrested on July 16

15 – Meysam Savari – Arrested on July 21

16 – Milad Savari – Arrested on July 21

17 – Mohammad Sakhrawi – Arrested on date not specified

18 – Mohammad Askari – Arrested on July 21

19 – Naser Zargani – Arrested on July 21

20 – Ra’d Heydari – Arrested on July 21

 

People arrested in the city of Bostan:

21 – Faraj Obaidai – Arrested on July 19

22 – Jasem Chaldavi – Arrested on July 19

23 – Malek Chaldavi – Arrested on July 19

24 – Milad Obaidawi – Arrested on July 19

25 – Milad savari – Arrested on July 21

 

People arrested in the city of Chamran:

26 – Ahmad Mujaddam – Arrested on July 22

27 – Ali Mujaddam – Arrested on July 22

28 – Mohammad Mujaddam – Arrested on July 22

 

People arrested in the city of Elhaei:

29 – Abbas Alhaei – Arrested on July 22

30 – Abbas Khovin – Arrested on July 22

31 – Abdol Razzaq Vahid – Arrested on July 22

32 – Amir Alhaei – Arrested on July 22

33 – Mobarak Alhaei – Arrested on July 22

 

People arrested in the city of Hamidiyeh:

34 – Abas Saedi – Arrested on July 22

35 – Ghasem Saedi – Arrested on July 22

36 – Mahmoud Saedi – Arrested on July 22

37 – Rasool Sava’edi – Arrested on July 22

38 – Razi Dahimawi – Arrested on July 21

39 – Sadegh Abyat – Arrested on July 22

40 – Sadegh Saedi – Arrested on July 22

41 – Tiban Saedi – Arrested on July 22

 

People arrested in the city of Khorramshahr:

42 – Abdolreza Soleimani – Arrested on July 18

43 – Ali Soleimani – Arrested on July 18

44 – Ali Soleimani Tamimi – Arrested on July 18

45 – Ali Abdol Hossein Gatafah – Arrested on July 18

46 – Basem Soleimani – Arrested on July 18

47 – Darem Soleimani – Arrested on July 18

48 – Mansour Soleimani – Arrested on July 18

49 – Yarallah Soleimani – Arrested on July 18

 

People arrested in the city of Lordegan:

50 – Ahura Mohammadi – Arrested on July 22

51 – Behnam Hassani – Arrested on July 22

52 – Hamed Hassani – Arrested on July 22

53 – Majed Hamidi – Arrested on date not specified at city of Mollasani

 

People arrested in the city of Ramshir:

54 – Ahmad Asli – Arrested on July 21

55 – Ali Amoori – Arrested on July 22

56 – Falak Amoori – Arrested on July 22

57 – Farzad Atabi – Arrested on July 21

58 – Hamed Khaledi – Arrested on July 21

59 – Hassan Amoori – Arrested on July 20

60 – Heydar AlBushoke – Arrested on July 21

61 – Jasem Tusi – Arrested on July 20

62 – Javad Jaberi – Arrested on July 21

63 – Khaled Amoori – Arrested on July 22

64 – Khaled Amoori – Arrested on  July 21

65 – Majid Mousavi – Arrested on July 21

66 – Mehdi Hamid – Arrested on July 19

67 – Mehdi Zoghibi – Arrested on July 20

68 – Mohammad Amoori – Arrested on July 21

69 – Moslem Echrash – Arrested on  July 22

70 – Muhammad AlBushoke – Arrested on July 21

71 – Omid Tusi – Arrested on July 20

72 – Sajad Mousavi – Arrested on July 21

73 – Saleh Khaledi – Arrested on July 21

 

People arrested in the city of Shavur:

74 – Abdollah Obaidawi – Arrested on July 22

75 – Ali Khosraji – Arrested on July 21

76 – Ali Mohsen Zidan – Arrested on July 21

77 – Ali Ka’bi – Arrested on July 21

78 – Ali Agbi – Arrested on date not specified

79 – Ali Mazrae – Arrested on July 17

80 – Ali Ka’bi – Arrested on July 22

81 – Ayub Abboud al-Namnum – Arrested on July 22

82 – Faysal Mazrae – Arrested on July 17

83 – Ghasem Mazrae – Arrested on July 17

84 – Hassan Mohsen Zidan – Arrested on July 21

85 – Hossein Shomli – Arrested on July 22

86 – Jamil Obaidawi – Arrested on July 21

87 – Khaled Mazrae – Arrested on  July 17

88 – Mehdi Khosraji – Arrested on July 22

89 – Mohammad Ka’bi – Arrested on July 22

90 – Saleh Obaidawi – Arrested on July 21

91 – Seyed Hassoun Iraqi – Arrested on July 22

 

People arrested in the city of Susangerd:

92 – Abdol Amir Jalali (Abu Yahya) – Arrested on July 20

93 – Adel Naderi – Arrested on July 20

94 – Ayad Abiyat – Arrested on date not specified

95 – Emad Abiyat – Arrested on date not specified

96 – Hamze Afrawi – Arrested on  July 20

97 – Ismail Jalali – Arrested on July 21

98 – Mansour Jalali – Arrested on July 20

99 – Mohammad Harizawi – Arrested on date not specified

100 – Mujtaba Salehi – Arrested on July 20

101 – Nader Abiyat – Arrested on date not specified

102 – Reza Afrawi – Arrested on July 20

 

People arrested in the city of Tehran:

103 – Mohammad Niyazi – Arrested on July 23

104 – Mostafa Arfai – Arrested on July 23

105 – Omid Saeedi – Arrested on July 23

***

Read our  Day 8 fact sheet for more info on what is going on in Khuzestan. For media interviews, contact Skylar Thompson at [email protected].

 

 

Khuzestan Update: IRIB Confirms that Citizen was Shot and Killed During Last Night’s Protests in Izeh

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Environment, Freedom of Expression
Abadan, ahvaz, Behbahan, IRIB, Izeh, khorramshahr, Khuzestan, Khuzestan water crisis, Khuzestan water shortages, Shadegan, Susangard, Tehran

The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) confirmed that a citizen was killed during last night’s protests in Izeh, Khuzestan.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Actiists, the IRIB report did not specify the identity of the killed citizen. However, it described his death as a result of a “suspicious” shooting—notably vague phrasing, considering that the overwhelming majority of gunfire throughout the protests has come from government forces.

Widespread protest rallies in Khuzestan started Thursday, July 15, in response to the negligence of officials that led to frequent cuts of drinking water and the drying of Karun River.

The demonstrations against the water cuts and lack of proper resource management continued yesterday into their sixth day. Rallies were held in Susangard, Behbahan, Abadan, Izeh, Ahvaz, Khorramshahr and Shadegan.

Hassan Nabovati, acting governor of Izeh, stated that one police officer was killed and another injured during the protests in Mahshahr last night.

As released videos show, the protests in Izeh were disrupted by violence from military forces. There were reports of military officers spraying tear gas and opening fire at protesters.

Activist Arrests and Tear Gas: Khuzestan Protests Continue Into Sixth Day

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Environment, Freedom of Expression
Abadan, ahvaz, arash kaykhosravi, Arash Sadeghi, Behzad Homayouni, Hamid Asefi, iran protests, Izeh, Jafar Azimzadeh, khorramshahr, Khuzestan, Khuzestan protests, Khuzestan water crisis, Narges Mohammadi, Pooran Nazemi, Rasoul Bodaghi, Ruhollah Mardani, Shadegan, Susangard

Today, July 20, the widespread protests in Khuzestan over the ongoing water crisis continued for a sixth consecutive day. Since the start of the protests on Thursday, provincial authorities have confirmed that at least two civilians have been killed by military forces.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, today’s protests took place in the cities of Izeh, Khorramshahr, Ahvaz, Shadegan, Abadan, Susangard, and Behbahan. HRANA received reports of shootings and internet shutdowns in some areas, as well as a report of the death of a protester, but neither have been confirmed as of this writing.

Today a number of prominent civil activists also gathered in Tehran to voice their support for the protesters in Khuzestan, and were met with violence from security forces. Activists Narges Mohammadi, Arash Sadeghi, Arash Kaykhosravi, Ruhollah Mardani, Jafar Azimzadeh, Rasoul Bodaghi, Pooran Nazemi, Hamid Asefi, and Behzad Homayouni were arrested by security forces in Tehran and taken to an unknown location.

Below is our updated map of the protests of the last five days.

Watch our compilation of footage from the protests.

Read our fact sheet for more info on what is going on in Khuzestan.

Five Day Summary: Recap of Ongoing Protests over Water Crisis in Khuzestan

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Environment, Freedom of Expression
Abadan, Abou Homeyzeh in Khuzestan Province, ahvaz, Ahvaz city, Bandar Mahshahr, Bostan, hamidiyeh, Hoveyzeh, Karkheh, khorramshahr, Khuzestan, Khuzestan province, Khuzestan water crisis, Kut Abdollah, Kut Seyed Naeem, Mashhad, Mollasani, Shadegan, Shavur, Shush, Shush city, Susangard

Today, July 19, the widespread protests in Khuzestan over the mismanagement of officials regarding the ongoing water crisis continued for a fifth consecutive day. Since the start of the protests on Thursday, provincial authorities have confirmed that at least two civilians have been killed by military forces.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, today’s rallies in Khuzestan took place in Hamidiyeh, Ahvaz, Kut Abdullah, Susangard, Ramhormoz, Mahshahr, Khorramshahr, Veys, and Chamranhere. There were no reports of violence or shootings by government forces except a report from Chamran city, which seems to be aerial shooting.

 

 

The weekend’s demonstrations also saw heavy escalation. As shown in videos previously published by HRANA, the Susangard protests were responded to with violence from on-duty military forces this Sunday. In multiple areas police opened fire on unarmed protesters.

The protestors blocked the roads connecting Ahvaz to Khorramshahr and Ahvaz to Shush by lighting fires. There have also reportedly been sporadic internet outages across the province.

Since the second day of the protests, provincial officials have confirmed that two citizens, 30-year-old Mostafa Naeemawi from Shadegan, and 17-year-old Ghasem Naseri (Khaziri) from the Kut Abdollah area of Ahvaz, were killed during the protests. HRANA has received reports, which have yet to be verified, of a third civilian additionally being shot dead by military forces.

Previously, the governor of Khuzestan said,  “The published videos of the protests in the province are fake and no protest has taken place.”

“Some seek to provoke the people and publish fake images of the protests in cyberspace,” the governor  further stated. “For example, nothing has happened in the cities of Khorramshahr and Susangard, but clips related to the past events are published in cyberspace!”

Public rallies to protest the water cuts and lack of access to drinking water began on the night of Thursday, July 15, and have spread to at least 17 cities so far.

During the last four days, people protested in at least 17 cities, including Shavur, Karkheh, Kut Seyed Naeem, Shush, Ahvaz, Abadan, Hamidiyeh, Bostan, Susangard, Bandar Mahshahr, Khorramshahr, Shadegan, Kut Abdollah, Mollasani, Hoveyzeh, and Abou Homeyzeh in Khuzestan Province and Mashhad. In some of the released videos, the sounds of gunfire can be heard, and a recurring theme across the footage is the heavy presence of armed military and security forces.

Local sources published reports, as of yet unverified, that several protesting citizens were injured and many others were detained in the city of Khorramshahr. So far, Abdolreza Soleimani, Darem Soleimani, Mansour Soleimani, Yarullah Soleimani and his son Ali Soleimani, all residents of Khorramshahr, are reportedly detained.

Workers at the Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Agro-Industry Company supported protests in Khuzestan during their rally and march on Sunday, July 18.

A resident of Ahvaz told HRANA about the situation in the city, “Special forces from other places are quickly (being) deployed to Ahvaz to suppress young protestors. Access to drinking water is one of the most basic civil rights. While Khuzestan was once considered the most water-rich province in the country, the mismanagement has led to the crisis of supply of drinking water in Khuzestan to become a serious challenge for people.”

Mahmoud Ahmadi Bighash, a representative of Shazand City in Parliament, said that providing water and development is an immediate responsibility of the entire government. Bighash wrote in a tweet:

“The situation in Khuzestan is concerning, I point it out indirectly, be very careful about what happened in Khuzestan; open all the [Karun River’s] water sources to quench Khuzestan’s thirst and put out the fire.”

Abdullah Izad Panah, Speaker of the House of Representatives of Khuzestan, also gave a statement in a recent meeting about crisis management in which he criticized the water transfer projects in the province.

“Water transfer projects should be stopped,” the representative said. “Drought is just one side of the issue. The transfer of water has caused Khuzestan to fall to this condition.”

Earlier, Jalil Mokhtar, the representative of Abadan, considered the problems caused by the transfer of water from Khuzestan province to other provinces, and mismanagement.

“Unfortunately, we have witnessed the water transfer from Khuzestan to other areas based on government approvals,” Mokhtar said. “Khuzestan, which was a fertile plain, is now on a desertification path.”

The Human Rights Defenders Association wrote an open letter to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights expressing concern about the suppression of protesters of the water crisis by security officials and calling for an end to the suppression.

“Khuzestan province, despite having rich oil resources, is among the most deprived provinces in Iran, and its residents are facing a high range unemployment, losing water sources, polluted air, and frequent power outages, so their protests are completely justified, and the response must not be bullets and imprisonment.”

Watch our compilation of video footage taken at various protests throughout the province.