About 1,500 people were killed during recent unrest in Iran, Reuters reports, citing three Iranian Interior Ministry officials.
The toll is significantly higher than the US estimation of over 1,000 killed, and Amnesty International, which put the toll at some 300.
According to the report, security forces brutally cracked down on the gasoline price protests in November after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered them to do whatever necessary to quell the demonstrations.
Iranian protesters block a road during a demonstration against an increase in gasoline prices in the central city of Shiraz on November 16, 2019. (AFP)
“The Islamic Republic is in danger. Do whatever it takes to end it. You have my order,” Khamenei told a meeting of advisers, according to one source.
“Our imam only answers to God. He cares about people and the Revolution. He was very firm and said those rioters should be crushed,” another source tells the news agency, referring to Khamenei.
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From the Liveblog of
Monday, December 23, 2019
