Iran Unrest Shows No Signs of Subsiding

Three security personnel have been killed by "rioters" in Iran, the latest deaths in protests that showed no sign of subsiding Tuesday despite a wave of arrests and an internet shutdown.

The deaths take to at least five the number of people confirmed to have been killed in the nationwide demonstrations that erupted on Friday against a shock decision to impose petrol price hikes.

The situation on the streets remains unclear largely due to the government-imposed internet outage which has entered a third day.'

The United Nations expressed alarm on Tuesday "that the use of live ammunition has allegedly caused a significant number of deaths across the country.”

On Tuesday morning, AFP journalists saw two petrol stations in central Tehran gutted by fire and damage to other infrastructure including a police station and pedestrian overpass.

But they were prevented from filming as hundreds of riot police stood guard at entrances to major squares in the Iranian capital with armoured vehicles and water cannon.

When the demonstrations broke out on Friday, drivers stopped their vehicles on major thoroughfares in Tehran to block traffic.

They soon turned violent and spread to more than 20 cities and towns across Iran, with banks, petrol stations and other public property set alight and shops looted.

The demonstrations erupted after it was announced the price of petrol would be raised by 50 percent for the first 60 litres purchased over a month and 200 percent for any extra fuel after that.

Iran's economy has been battered since May last year when President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a 2015 nuclear agreement and reimposed crippling sanctions.

Ambush

Footage of masked young men clashing with security forces has been broadcast on state television, which rarely shows any signs of dissent.

In a new video aired Monday night, a man can be seen firing what appears to be an assault rifle as others hurl stones apparently at security forces in the western city of Andimeshk.

In the latest bloodshed, assailants wielding knives and machetes ambushed and killed three security personnel west of Tehran, the ISNA and Fars news agencies reported late Monday.

One of the three was identified as Morteza Ebrahimi, a commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and father of a newborn child, according to Fars.

The other two were Majid Sheikhi, 22, and Mostafa Rezaie, 33. Both served in the Basij militia, a volunteer force loyal to the establishment.

The overall toll—which also includes a civilian and policeman—is expected to rise, with unofficial reports saying that at least six other people have been killed.

It is the worst violence since at least 25 lives were lost in protests over economic hardship that started in Iran's second city Mashhad in December 2017 before spreading to other urban centers.

Internet Outage

In response to the violence, the authorities say they have arrested more than 200 people.

The internet outage has stemmed the flow of videos shared on social media of protests or associated acts of violence.

"National connectivity remains at just five percent of normal levels, leaving Iranians cut off from the world," tweeted Netblocks, a website that monitors global net shutdowns.

Iran announced the decision to impose petrol price hikes and rationing at midnight Thursday-Friday, saying the move was aimed at helping the needy with cash handouts.

The plan agreed by a council made up of the president, parliament speaker and judiciary chief comes at a sensitive time ahead of February parliamentary elections

It has received the public support of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

President Hassan Rouhani has defended the price hike saying the proceeds will be used to make welfare payments to 60 million Iranians.

The United States has condemned Iran for using "lethal force".

Iran hit back at its arch-enemy on Monday, slamming US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after he tweeted "the United States is with you" in response to the demonstrations.

Germany called for dialogue between the government and "legitimate" protesters while France reiterated its support for the right to peaceful demonstration and voiced regret over the deaths.

Judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili warned on Tuesday that the authorities would deal firmly with those who endanger security and carry out arson attacks.

In televised remarks, he also called on citizens to inform on "seditionists" who have committed acts of violence.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Frees Lebanese Man Convicted of Spying for US

Iran on Tuesday freed a Lebanese man detained in 2015 on charges of spying for the United States, a gesture that comes amid soaring tensions between Tehran and Washington.

A US resident in his 50s, Nizar Zakka was arrested in September 2015 during a visit to Iran, where he was convicted the following July.

He is the head of The Arab ICT Organization, a non-profit that advocates the growth and development of information and communications technology in the Middle East.

Before his arrest, he had been taking part in a conference in Tehran at the invitation of Shahindokht Molaverdi, then vice-president for women and family affairs, according to his family.

He was stopped on his way to the airport, his family and lawyer have said.

At the time, Iranian state television said he was accused of "deep ties to the military and intelligence services of the United States.”

It broadcast photographs of a man in military uniform it said was of Zakka at a US base.

On Tuesday, Zakka arrived in Lebanon, after his release by Iranian authorities.

He was escorted back to his native country by Lebanon's General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim, who was in Tehran one day earlier, according to the security service.

In a speech at Lebanon's presidential palace, Zakka declined to elaborate on the circumstances behind his arrest but dismissed the case against him.

"There was no espionage," he said after meeting President Michel Aoun, accusing Tehran of "kidnapping him" on false charges and staging a "show trial.”

Presidential Request

For his part, the general security chief denied speculation Iran's Lebanese ally Hezbollah played a primary role in brokering Zakka's release.

"The issue was resolved at the request of the president," Ibrahim told reporters.

"Hezbollah definitely played a role but the basis (for the release) was a request from the president."

His comments came in response to a report by Iran's Fars news agency on Monday that Zakka's release followed "the request and mediation" of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah.

"Zaka has been freed and extradited, thanks to Nasrallah's mediation and the respect Tehran pays to him," it said, citing an "informed source.”

Tehran has direct control over Hezbollah, its main proxy in the region.

Earlier on Tuesday, a spokesman for Iran's judiciary Gholamhossein Esmaili said Aoun had requested Zakka's release "in writing" and Hezbollah had said it would be "expedient.”

"This is an absolutely judicial procedure and no political issue has been involved," Esmaili was quoted as saying by Iran's Tasnim news agency.

Meanwhile, Zakka's lawyer appealed for help for other detainees being held in Iranian prisons following his client's release.

"Nizar expresses his sincerest thanks to those who never forgot him," Jason Poblete said in an emailed statement.

"Nizar also wants to remind those who can help that there remain many Americans... and other foreigners in Iranian prisons. Nizar grew close to some of these men; they need help and want to come home."

Rising Tensions

Iran and the United States broke diplomatic ties in 1980 in the aftermath of the Islamic revolution. Relations have deteriorated sharply since US President Donald Trump took office in January 2017.

At the end of 2017, an Iranian court upheld Zakka's 10-year jail sentence as well as those of an American and two Iranian-Americans accused of "collaboration" with the United States.

Zakka's brother Ziad has previously accused Lebanese officials of neglecting his case.

The decision to release him comes amid a stand-off that has been simmering since the United States last year withdrew from the 2015 nuclear treaty which Iran reached with major world powers.

Tensions have intensified since April when the US added Iran's Revolutionary Guards to its blacklist of "terrorist" organizations and strengthened sanctions against the Islamic republic.

The standoff has worsened recent weeks, after the US military announced it was dispatching reinforcements to the Middle East in response to alleged "Iranian threats" as well as the sabotage of four ships at the entrance to the Gulf on May 12.

Washington and Riyadh have accused Tehran of being behind those attacks, a charge it has dismissed as "laughable.”

Photo: IRNA

Iran Leader Pardons 691 on Eid, But Lebanese Excluded

Iran's supreme leader pardoned hundreds of prisoners on the occasion of the end of Ramadan, but a Lebanese national who Beirut expected to be released was not among them, authorities said Sunday.

In total, the sentences of 691 prisoners were either commuted or deferred as decided by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as a gesture for the Eid al-Fitr holidays, said the judiciary's Mizan Online news website.

Last week, Lebanon said one of its nationals condemned in 2016 to 10 years' jail in Iran after being found guilty of spying for the United States would be on the pardon list.

The Lebanese foreign ministry, quoted by the country's official NNA news agency, said Nizar Zakka would be pardoned at the request of Beirut as a gesture for Eid.

But Zakka's name was not on the list, said Iran's judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili.

"The individual was sentenced and the president of Lebanon had—in letters to judicial officials—requested a conditional pardon," he said, quoted by Mizan. 

"This request has been in the judicial process and, in case any decision is taken by the judicial apparatus, information will be provided."

A resident of the United States in his 50s, Zakka was arrested in September 2015 during a visit to Iran, where he was convicted the following July.

At the time of his arrest, state television in Iran charged Zakka had "deep ties to military and intelligence services of the United States", Iran's arch-foe.

It broadcast photographs of a man in military uniform it said was of Zakka at an American base.

At the end of 2017, Iranian courts confirmed his 10-year sentence on appeal, as well as that of an American and two Iranian-Americans accused of "collaboration" with the United States.

Iran and the United States broke diplomatic ties in 1980, and their relations have deteriorated significantly since US President Donald Trump took office in January 2017.

Photo: IRNA