King Solomon's mines were abandoned and became a desert wasteland. Here's why.

Tom Metcalfe - Yesterday 

Copper mines in Israel's Negev Desert — ancient sites that may have inspired the legend of King Solomon's mines of gold — were abandoned 3,000 years ago, when people there used up all the plants to make charcoal for smelting, a new study finds.


Archaeologists have been excavating a site known as Slaves Hill in the Timna Valley, which was a major center for copper production from the 11th to the ninth centuries B.C.© Photo by Hai Ashkenazi, courtesy of the Central Timna Valley Project

The researchers studied fragments of charcoal from ancient furnaces in the Timna Valley near Eilat, where a prosperous copper industry thrived from the 11th to ninth centuries B.C.

They found that the quality of the wood used to make charcoal deteriorated over the roughly 250 years when the mines and smelters operated, as people there used up all the nearby white broom and acacia and started using wood of much lower quality, such as the trunks of palm trees.

By about 850 B.C. the copper industry had been abandoned, and the wasted desert that remained wouldn't be exploited again for a millennium.

Related: King Solomon's mines in Spain? Not likely, experts say.

"Over time, they're using less and less of the wood that they knew from the beginning was better," study lead author Mark Cavanagh, an archaeobotanist and a doctoral student at Tel Aviv University, told Live Science. "And it looks like they're gathering wood from farther and farther away."

Ancient industry

The Timna Valley was one of the first places in the ancient world where copper was made, Cavanagh said. The region is an extension of the Great African Rift, so many minerals made deep in Earth's crust are exposed near the surface, including copper ores, he said.

Some of the earliest evidence for smelting copper ore in the Timna Valley dates to about 7,500 years ago, during the Chalcolithic, or Copper-Stone period, at the end of the Neolithic, or New Stone Age. The secret of alloying tin to the copper to make hard-wearing bronze wouldn't be discovered for about another 1,000 years.

For the latest research, published Sept. 21 in the journal Scientific Reports, Cavanagh and his colleagues studied fragments of charcoal from a much later period: during the Iron Age about 3,000 years ago, when the copper industry at Timna was at its peak.

Wood was first burned in underground pits with only a small amount of air to make charcoal, which burned much hotter, and for longer, during the copper smelting process, Cavanagh said.

To determine which types of wood were used to make the charcoal, the researchers utilized an electron microscope to examine the slag left over from the smelting. Their analysis revealed the cell structures of the woods used, which showed that white broom and acacia were used extensively in the early phases of the copper industry at Timna but that much lower-quality wood was used later on.

Eventually, the mines were abandoned, possibly in part because it had become so hard to find good wood nearby, Cavanagh said. The copper industry at Timna wouldn't be restarted for about 1,000 years, when the Nabateans and then the Romans began importing better wood for charcoal.

King Solomon's mines

Cavanagh suggested that the hunt for wood to make charcoal in the Timna Valley contributed to the desert conditions there today, although it was a very dry environment to begin with.

"When you start cutting down the trees, you set in motion a snowball effect," he said. Fewer trees meant fewer animals and less water in the entire ecosystem, and "some of the things that disappeared have never returned."

Related: Could the Sahara ever be green again?

The period between the 11th and ninth centuries B.C. was when the biblical Israelite kings David and his son Solomon are thought to have ruled in Jerusalem, although some scholars now think David and Solomon may not have existed, according to historian Eric Cline of George Washington University in Washington, D.C.




1 of 3 Photos in Gallery©Provided by Live Science


Cavanagh suggested that copper from the ancient industry at Timna might have given rise to the reputed wealth on display at Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem that was later interpreted by ancient writers as gold.

In 1885, Victorian writer H. Rider Haggard set his adventure novel "King Solomon's Mines" in South Central Africa, supposing them to be gold mines, and it's been made into movies, comics, and television and radio programs many times since. It's not clear if Haggard borrowed the myth of Solomon's gold mines or if he made it up.

Archaeologist Israel Finkelstein, a professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University who isn't involved in the latest study, thinks David and Solomon were probably historical people who lived in about the 10th century B.C.

But he thinks their importance and the scale of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah that they ruled were greatly exaggerated in the Bible.

"Archaeology indicates that the territory ruled by David and Solomon was restricted, and it did not reach the copper sites in the south," he told Live Science in an email. "The first indication of the expansion of Judah into the arid zones in the south (and even then, not as far south as the copper sites) can be found in the 9th century — that is, a century after David and Solomon."

Alberta man discovers prehistoric mammoth tusk in yard on Saddle Lake Cree Nation

Chris Chacon - Yesterday 

A man from the Saddle Lake Cree Nation, east of Edmonton, made the discovery of a lifetime while working on a project in his yard.


A mammoth tusk found by Jarrod Cardinal on the Saddle Lake Cree Nation, Alta. in September 2022.© Courtesy: LakelandTODAY.ca via Global News

Read more:
Prehistoric shark tooth fossil discovered by young boy in central Alberta yard

Jarrod Cardinal was digging a hole for a project in his yard — until his shovel struck a hard object roughly six feet in the ground.

"I didn't really know what is was at first," Jarrod Cardinal said, not thinking much of it. "It was getting dark — I took it out of the dirt and threw it to the side."

He didn't get a closer look until the next day.

"I thought it was wood at first. I was just puzzled by it. I didn't know what it was, I thought maybe this is a tusk or something," Cardinal said.

"We're like, 'What is a tusk doing here?'" said Cardinal's sister Carol Buffalo, who was there when he found the object.

"It forms into a tusk if you put all the pieces together and there probably still is something under there still."

Related video: Saddle Lake Cree Nation man discovers prehistoric mammoth tusk in yard

Saddle Lake Cree Nation man discovers prehistoric mammoth tusk in yard

Pictures of the mystery find were sent to a paleontologist at the University of Alberta. Not only is it old — but it comes from an animal you only see or hear about in museums.

"An expert verified and they told us it was a mammoth tusk. He's an expert in that field and right away he said it was authentic," Cardinal said.

Read more:
Mammoth bones, ‘ghost’ footprints: Did humans arrive in North America much earlier than we thought?

The vast majority of woolly mammoths have been extinct for about 11,000 years, since the end of the last ice age.

They were known to have roamed parts of Alberta, but finding part of one is something Cardinal said he would have never thought he'd come across.

"I was just blown away! I didn't know what to think about it at first," Cardinal said.

"I didn't think it was a big deal at first, but who digs a hole in the ground and finds something like that?"

"That's like a one-in-a-million (chance of) finding something in the ground like that," Buffalo said.

News of the fossil find had sparked a buzz of excitement for some on the Saddle Lake Cree Nation.

"Its popular now, everyone keeps walking up to him to asks to see it because we've never seen something like that — it's just in the museums you see it," Buffalo said.

Cardinal stopped digging the area, not wanting to damage any other possible fossils in the ground.

Read more:
Colossal bet aims to revive, unleash woolly mammoth in Canada’s Arctic

He plans to hold on to the fossil for a now, but welcomes further expert examination of the tusk and the site where it was found.

If a homeowner or business thinks they have found a fossil while digging a basement or dugout, they’re advised to stop their work, take photos and record where the fossil was, and call or email the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Drumheller.

Video: Sacred Indigenous stone to be returned to original site in Alberta

Research reveals humans used ‘high-tech’ glue 100,000 years ago

Talker News - Thursday
By Stephen Beech via SWNS

Early humans were using high-tech 'glue' made from a local conifer in Africa 100,000 years ago, a new study has revealed.

Scientists say it may even have been a "turning point" in human cultural evolution.

In the Middle Stone Age, early Homo sapiens utilized adhesive made from local Podocarpus trees to attach stone tools to wooden spears.

Scientists say the substance has "excellent" adhesive properties and can only be produced via an "elaborate" process.

Dr. Patrick Schmidt and Ph.D. student Tabea Koch, from the University of Tübingen in Germany, mapped out the production in a joint study with Professor Edmund February from the University of Cape Town in South Africa.

The research team says the fact that early modern humans did not resort to more readily available adhesives tens of thousands of years ago is a testament to their innovative abilities and skills.

Yellowwoods, conifers of the genus Podocarpus, are tropical evergreen shrubs and trees.



(SWNS)© Provided by talker

Dr. Schmidt said: "Adhesives have been discovered at several Middle Stone Age sites in South Africa, mostly as residues on scrapers or stone blades that had been glued to handles or spears.

"Chemical analysis had shown that such glue was often extracted from yellowwoods. This is surprising because yellowwoods do not exude tree resins or any other sticky substance."


The team investigated how the adhesive could be made when only Stone Age materials and tools were available.

Dr. Schmidt said: "The leaves of the yellowwoods contain small amounts of resin, which you have to distill out."

The team discovered two ways to manufacture the glue.

Dr. Schmidt said: “It’s quite simple to burn the leaves directly next to flat stones.

"This leads to the condensation of tar, which can be scraped off the stones. This is a process that people may have discovered by accident."

He said the second option is more difficult and time-consuming. In it, the leaves have to be heated in a kind of underground distillery for several hours, so that the tar drips into a container. It is not known which method was used.



(SWNS)© Provided by talker

Dr. Schmidt says that either way, it was astonishing that early modern humans at that time did not use any plants other than yellowwoods as sources of glue.

"People could have simply collected tree resin." Koch said. "In several species that occurred in their environment, it flows visibly from the trunk. And some plants release sticky latex when the leaves break off."

The team found the explanation with the help of standard laboratory tests, such as those used in the adhesives industry:

Dr. Schmidt said: "Our tar distilled from yellowwoods had particularly good mechanical properties and proved to be stronger than all other naturally occurring adhesive substances of the Stone Age in South Africa; it was able to hold significantly larger loads."

He added: "People weren't selecting materials based on their properties, they were modifying the existing material.

"Such new engineering technology required higher cognitive abilities and innovative thinking."

The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

The post Research reveals humans used ‘high-tech’ glue 100,000 years ago appeared first on Talker.

Humans Are Descended From Sharks, Scientists Reveal
Joshua Jones - Thursday

Scientists have revealed that an ancient shark with paired spines and bony armor may be humans’ earliest ancestor. The Paleozoic fossil was retrieved from a site in Shiqian County in Guizhou Province, South China. With the finding, scientists have come to understand the existence of human sharks.


Humans Are Descended From Sharks, Scientists Reveal© Provided by Giant Freakin Robot

The specimen is named Fanjingshania renovata, after the UNESCO World Heritage Site Fanjingshan. A bizarre fish with bony armor and paired spines, unlike anything scientists have come across today. Human sharks are just now one of the many revelations that shocked scientists and could bring humans closer to aquatic life.

The revelation that humans may be the descendants of sharks is funny, considering that not too long ago, Florida beachgoers were surprised by the sudden appearance of three sharks during Memorial Day weekend. Video of the encounter shows people reacting not in panic but in pure shock and excitement. People quickly pointed out that the aquatic fish were scalloped hammerhead sharks.

The sharks were right next to the beachgoer’s boat, circling around and getting quite personal with people. If humans were indeed the descendants of sharks, how do we explain the predator/prey relationship we have towards these aquatic animals? Could it be interpreted that humans fear even their ancestors?

As hilarious as it may seem, it does point out that we still have quite a bit of research to do. Human sharks may even be why sharks were massing off the coast of the U.S. in 2021. In addition to sharks swimming toward the East coast, there were also turtles.

Fanjingshania hails from a group of animals known for their cartilage, not their bones. As noted by IFLScience, the working hypothesis is that Fanjingshania's unusual traits may explain the “early evolutionary branch of primitive chondrichthyans.” The findings may help us understand more about Jaw fishes.



King Shark, king of the human sharks© Provided by Giant Freakin Robot

Dr. Ivan J. Sansom from the University of Birmingham concluded that the discovery “puts into question the existing models of vertebrae evolution.” He also stated that the discovery would have a “profound impact” on the access of evolutionary rates in early vertebrates. These findings are exciting and could answer whether humans are indeed the descendants of sharks.

Despite all of this, it would still be quite weird for humans and sharks to have this close link. We commonly have described these creatures as predators, threats to our existence. But as it turns out, these creatures might be where we came from.

It’s even weirder, considering that we were once on the verge of having a volcano eruption full of mutated sharks. If humans are the descendants of sharks, then do humans suddenly start treating these aquatic animals differently? And what about the movie Jaws, was Steven Spielberg on to something when he made the film back in 1978?

Whatever the case, it’s interesting that humans and sharks may have this type of relationship. Only time will tell whether these findings do indeed tell us more about our evolutionary history. Knowing how the world works, scientists may discover that we are descendants of other aquatic species.

The post Humans Are Descended From Sharks, Scientists Reveal appeared first on GIANT FREAKIN ROBOT.

A North Dakota Excavation Had One Paleontologist Rethinking The Dinosaurs' Extinction

Sandra Mardenfeld - Yesterday 

Dinosaurs continue to fascinate, even though they became extinct 65 million years ago. These powerful creatures prowled the Earth for about 165 million years before mysteriously disappearing (via U.S. Geological Survey). Still, people's ardor for this group of reptiles is so passionate that 12% of Americans surveyed in an Ipsos poll would resurrect T. rexes and the rest of these mysterious creatures if it were possible.


dinosaur tyrannosaurus rex© FOTOKITA/Shutterstock

There is still much unknown about these prehistoric animals. In fact, there are probably dinosaur types that still remain unidentified, reported Smithsonian Magazine. Despite more than 200 years of study, paleontologists have named only several hundred species. Though this might seem like a large number, a study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences said it's possible that more than 1,800 different kinds of dinosaurs walked the earth. The study of these creatures is limited to the fossils they left behind — and those provide an incomplete picture. A fossil, after all, is only created under precise circumstances, with the dinosaur dying in a place that could preserve its remains in rock. While some lived near a river, lake, lagoon, or another place where sediment was found, many thrived in other habitats.

Another question about dinosaurs is what caused their extinction ... and there are many theories about that, too. What we do know is that during the Jurassic period, great global upheaval occurred with increases in temperature, surging sea levels, and less humidity. Some scientists say this destroyed the dinosaurs; others believe they thrived during the period.

What Killed The Dinosaurs?


asteroid earth space© Hamara/Shutterstock

Many theories exist about why the dinosaurs disappeared from the Earth. Could it be a comet, asteroid, or meteor that crashed into the planet, and the reverberations ended the reign of the dinosaurs? Was it a fierce volcanic eruption that toppled these creatures? Robert DePalma, a curator at the Palm Beach Museum of Natural History, found some rare fossils close to Bowman, North Dakota, in 2013 that led to a hypothesis of his own. The site, dubbed "Tanis," first underwent excavation in 2012, with DePalma and his team digging along a section known as the Hell Creek Formation (via Boredom Therapy).

Underneath a freshwater paddlefish skeleton, a mosasaur tooth appeared. This dinosaur, a giant reptilian, lived during the Early Cretaceous period in oceans. DePalma and his group knew the creature could not have survived in North Dakota's fresh waters during the prehistoric age. But there were other inconsistencies at the excavation site — the fossils they found seemed out of place, with some skeletons located in vertical positions. Plus, tektites, pieces of natural glass formed by a meteor's impact, were scattered amid the soil. All of these factors seemed strange and confused the paleontologists. Could this provide evidence to the theory that an asteroid did indeed cause the mass extinction of the dinosaurs? This explanation was proposed long before DePalma's discovery. Some scientists cite the KT layer — a 66-million-year-old section of earth present through most of the world, with a high iridium level — as proof that this is so.

An Excavation Offers New Information


fossil of a mosasaur tooth© Mark_Kostich/Shutterstock

The 112-mile Chicxulub crater, located on the Yucatán Peninsula, contains the same mineral — iridium — as the KT layer, and it's often cited as further proof that a giant asteroid was responsible for killing dinosaurs (per Boredom Therapy). Disbelievers of this supposition, though, point to the lack of fossils in the KT layer as proof that this thesis is false — more fossils are discovered some 10 feet underneath the layer. This means that the skeletons located there are older than the asteroid that hit the earth, suggesting that some other event, like widespread volcanic eruptions or even climate change, did the dinosaurs in even before the asteroid appeared.

Related video: Did dinosaurs have polkadots and feathers?
Duration 2:28
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DePalma believed that the fossils found in Tanis, which sat on the KT layer, became collected there just after the asteroid struck the earth. He suggested that the impact caused huge seiches (or tsunamis), which allowed the mosasaur tooth to travel from fresh water to that spot, along with freshwater sturgeon that may have choked on glassy pieces from the collision, reported Science. "That's the first ever evidence of the interaction between life on the last day of the Cretaceous and the impact event," team member Phillip Manning, a paleontologist at the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom, told the publication.

Some scientists were not happy with this proposal. "I hope this is all legit — I'm just not 100% convinced yet," said Thomas Tobin, a geologist at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

Two Sides Of A Theory


sea turtle fossil© Mike Brake/Shutterstock

Some scientists question Robert DePalma's methods. The site, after all, does not conclusively prove that the asteroid's impact actually caused the dinosaurs' demise, reported Science. It could be just one factor in a series of environmental events that led to their extinction. "I'm suspicious of the findings. They've been presented at meetings in various ways with various associated extraordinary claims," a West Coast paleontologist said to The New Yorker. "He could have stumbled on something amazing, but he has a reputation for making a lot out of a little."

According to Science, DePalma was incorrect in 2015 when he believed he discovered a bone from a new type of dinosaur. He had already named the genus Dakotaraptor when others identified it as belonging to a prehistoric turtle. While DePalma corrected his claim, his reputation still took a hit. According to The New Yorker, DePalma also sports some off-putting paleontology practices, like keeping his discovery secret for so long and limiting other scientists' access to the site. Others defend DePalma, like his co-author, Mark Richards, a geophysicist at the University of California, Berkeley. "That some competitors have cast Robert in a negative light is unfortunate and unfair," Richards told Science.

Some of the gripes occurred because DePalma first shared his story with a mainstream publication, The New Yorker, instead of a more academic-based journal, said Bored Therapy. He later wrote a piece for the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The Importance Of The Dinosaurs' Death


dinosaurs after asteroid hits© ronniejcmc/Shutterstock

Robert DePalma made headlines again in 2021 with the discovery of a leg from a Thescelosaurus dinosaur at Tanis, reported The Washington Post. The paleontologist believed that this new information further supported the theory that an asteroid killed the dinosaurs — along with 75 percent of the animals and plants on Earth — 66 million year ago. "We're never going to say with 100 percent certainty that this leg came from an animal that died on that day," the scientist said to the publication. "The thing we can do is determine the likelihood that it died the day the meteor struck. When we look at the preservation of the leg and the skin around the articulated bones, we're talking on the day of impact or right before. There was no advanced decay."

Since Tanis became an excavation site, several other fossils were found, including a pterosaur embryo. Petrified fish with glass spheres, called ejecta, were also at the site. DePalma purported that these animals died during the asteroid's impact since the glass's chemical makeup indicates an extraordinary explosion — something similar to the detonation of 10 billion bombs. "I've been asked, 'Why should we care about this? Dinosaurs have been dead for so long,'" DePalma told The Washington Post. "It's not just for paleo nerds. This directly applies to today. We're seeing mass die-offs of animals and biomes that are being put through very stressful situations worldwide. By looking through this window into the past, we can apply these lessons to today."

UK

Train services set to be crippled by fresh strike, as Royal Mail staff walk out for second day

A reduced timetable has been published, showing that just 11% of rail services will run today, with some areas having no trains.


Saturday 1 October 2022 

Some areas of the country will have no services all day

Rail passengers have been urged to only travel if "absolutely necessary" today as members of four trade unions stage a 24-hour walkout.

The latest strike by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), Aslef, Unite and the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) is expected to cause the worst rail disruption of the year so far.

A reduced timetable shows that just 11% of rail services will run today.

Read more: Rail strikes - Dates for October disruption and which lines are affected

Trains will start later in the morning and finish earlier in the evening and there will be no trains at all across large parts of the network.

Transport for London said some of its services will be affected, with no service expected on London Overground.

Passengers have also been warned there is likely to be some disruption on Sunday morning as rail staff return to work.

MORE ON RAIL STRIKES

Rail strikes: Dates for October disruption and which lines are affected


Rail strikes: RMT chief Mick Lynch says Sir Keir Starmer must 'cosy up to working class people' to be effective in Opposition


Unions condemn Kwarteng's 'anti-democratic' crackdown on strikes - and announce further action

Royal Mail

Delegates travelling to the Conservative Party conference this weekend and runners and spectators trying to get into London in time for the start of the marathon on Sunday are likely to be frustrated by the strike.

'Govt must lift shackles from train companies'

Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said his members are increasingly angry at the lack of progress in the long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions.

"We don't want to be on strike but this dispute will continue until the government lifts the shackles from the train companies," he said.

"The message I am receiving from my members is that they want more industrial action, so I think more strikes are inevitable."

Another strike by Aslef will be held on Wednesday, while RMT members will walk out again on 8 October, and again on 10 October in Scotland.

Andrew Haines, Network Rail's chief executive, said: "Despite our best efforts to compromise and find a breakthrough in talks, rail unions remain intent on continuing and co-ordinating their strike action.

"This serves only to ensure our staff forgo even more of their pay unnecessarily, as well as causing even more disruption for our passengers and further damaging the railway's recovery from the pandemic."

'Unnecessary and damaging'

Daniel Mann, director of industry operations at Rail Delivery Group, described the strikes as "unnecessary and damaging".

"It is particularly disheartening that this weekend's strike will hit the plans of thousands of runners who have trained for months to take part in the iconic London Marathon," he said.

"That will also punish the many charities, large and small, who depend on sponsorship money raised by such events to support the most vulnerable in our community.

"While we have done all we can to keep some services running, passengers should only travel by rail if absolutely necessary."

 

Royal Mail staff began their 48-hour walkout on Friday

Meanwhile, Royal Mail workers will mount picket lines outside Royal Mail delivery and sorting offices again in a continuing row over pay and conditions.

Read more: Royal Mail strikes - When are staff walking out and what's affected?

Members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) walked out on a 48-hour strike on Friday, hitting deliveries of post across the country.

Talks between the union and Royal Mail were held on Thursday but there was no sign of any progress being made and the CWU is planning to step up industrial action in the coming weeks.

A further 19 days of strikes have been announced on different days throughout October and November in a major escalation of the dispute.

UPDATES TOO

Iran arrests Europeans accused of role in unrest


Parisa Hafezi
Fri, September 30, 2022 


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Death of woman in morality police custody kindled protests

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Widening revolt against clerical establishment

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Iran blames hostile West for stoking unrest

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State media says 19 killed during attack on police station


DUBAI, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Iran, which has blamed "foreign enemies" for protests that swept the country after the death of a woman in police custody, has arrested nine European nationals for their role in the unrest, the Intelligence Ministry said on Friday.

The detention of citizens of Germany, Poland, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Sweden and other countries is likely to ratchet up tensions between Iran and Western countries over the death of Mahsa Amini.


The escalation comes as more casualties were reported, with the state news agency saying 19 people may have been killed after security forces fired on armed protesters attacking a police station.

Tehran has responded to international condemnation of the case by lashing out at its critics, accusing the United States of exploiting the unrest to try to destabilise Iran.

The nine unidentified people were detained "during the riots or while plotting in the background," the ministry said in a statement carried by Iranian media.

Amini, a 22-year-old from the Iranian Kurdish town of Saqez, was arrested this month in Tehran for "unsuitable attire" by the morality police who enforce the Islamic Republic's strict dress code for women.

Her death has caused the first big show of opposition on Iran's streets since authorities crushed protests against a rise in gasoline prices in 2019. The demonstrations have quickly evolved into a popular revolt against the clerical establishment.

While analysts don't expect Iran's clerical rulers to fall, they are struggling to come up with a strategy to defuse the protests.

Rights groups said dozens of activists, students and artists have been detained and the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Twitter that it had learned that security forces had arrested at least 28 journalists as of Sept. 29.

A senior Iranian cleric called for tough action earlier on Friday against protesters.

"Our security is our distinctive privilege. The Iranian people demand the harshest punishment for these barbaric rioters," said Mohammad Javad Haj Ali Akbari, a leader of prayers that are held on Fridays in Tehran before a large gathering.

"The people want the death of Mahsa Amini to be cleared up...so that enemies cannot take advantage of this incident."

Amnesty International said on Friday the government crackdown on demonstrations has so far led to the death of at least 52 people, with hundreds injured.

POLICE STATIONS ATTACKED

Despite the growing death toll and crackdown by authorities, videos posted on social media showed demonstrators calling for the fall of the clerical establishment.

Heavy shooting could be heard some videos as protesters chanted "Death to Khamenei", referring to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Activist Twitter account 1500tasvir, which has more than 150,000 followers, posted videos which it said showed protests in cities including Ahvaz in the southwest, Mashhad in the northeast and Zahedan in the southeast, where people were said to be attacking a police station.

Reuters could not verify the footage.

State television said "unidentified armed individuals" opened fire on a police station in Zahedan in the southeast, prompting security forces to return fire.

State news agency IRNA said 19 people were killed in Zahedan. A video on social media showed aid being given to several injured protesters by their comrades, one of whom was trying to limit bleeding from a man who appeared to be shot in the neck.

The semi-official Fars news agency said at least two people were killed and dozens injured, citing unspecified reports.

Protests have spread to restive southeast Iran, home to the Baluch ethnic minority, with demonstrators torching government offices in at least one city. Protesters are angered by Amini's death and the case of a local teenage girl whose family, backed by a local cleric, alleges was raped by a senior policeman, according to reports on social media.

Western human rights groups say that Iran, dominated by its Persian Shi'ite majority, discriminates against ethnic and religious minorities. Tehran denies this.

(Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Angus MacSwan, Alex Richardson and Toby Chopra)

A 20-year-old TikToker killed while protesting for women's rights has become a symbol of Iran's resistance



7
Kieran Press-Reynolds
Fri, September 30, 2022 

Violent protests have spread across Iran following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.


Hadis Najafi, a protester killed in the rallies, has emerged as a symbol of the demonstrations.


A video went viral that many claimed showed Najafi, although it was a different woman.

As antigovernment demonstrations continue across Iran following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody, a young female protester killed in the rallies has become the focus of online attention and tributes. Hadis Najafi, a 20-year-old who frequently posted on social media, has emerged as a symbol of the protests after reports say she was killed by security forces in the city of Karaj.

Najafi left behind TikTok and Instagram accounts that have become memorials to her life and pages in support of the demonstrations, with thousands of people liking and commenting on her photos and videos. Najafi's last post, on September 5, has over 16,000 comments and is filled with people paying tribute to her.

The protests erupted on September 16 and have since spread to 80 cities in Iran, according to The New York Times. Police have fired on protesters and state media has acknowledged at least 41 people have died in the rallies so far, according to The Guardian. Massive waves of people have demonstrated in support of the late Amini — who was arrested for allegedly breaking Iran's mandatory hijab rules — and called on the government to increase women's autonomy.

Women and younger citizens are taking over the internet in protest of Amini and Nafaji's deaths

The online reactions to Amini and Najafi's deaths and the ongoing demonstrations has been intense, even amid a widespread internet blackout in Iran that echoes previous attempts by the country's government to smother collective dissent. Activists have told reporters that Iranians are using numerous methods, such as VPNs, to evade internet censorship.

Numerous images and videos from the protests have been shared millions of times online. A viral video with over 10 million views shows women burning head scarves in a fire as people cheer them on, while footage of a woman cutting her hair at the funeral of her sister who was reportedly killed in the protests was widely shared across platforms.

Holly Dagres, a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, told Insider that what makes these demonstrations stand out from the long history of protests in Iran is that they are being led by a younger and more digitally aware generation than in previous years.

"The youth, Iranian Gen Z, who are taking the helms of these protests and saying they no longer want an Islamic Republic," Dagres said.

Over the last week, social media platforms have swarmed with videos of young adults charging the streets and crowds of people carrying signs and waving flags to demonstrate against the hard-line government. Other clips have gained traction featuring people chanting "death to the dictator." A trend has also taken off on TikTok where Iranian and Muslim women across the globe are cutting off their hair and slicing up hijabs to show solidarity with Iranian women fighting against the hijab mandates.

Meanwhile, many political leaders from other countries have spoken out online in support of the Iranian people. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced new sanctions against Iran and said he would "stop at nothing to ensure that this regime is held to account." US Vice President Kamala Harris tweeted a statement last week on holding "Iranian officials accountable for the senseless death of Mahsa Amini and other human rights abuses."

In an echo of the uproar over Amini's killing, Najafi has now also become a rallying point for protesters. Her instagram photos are flooded with tens of thousands of people liking and commenting on them, a hashtag of her name was used in almost 10,000 tweets within one hour on Monday afternoon, and supporters have posted numerous illustrations and videos dedicated to her.

Najafi's older sister also posted a video of the funeral following her sister's killing, which received over 270,000 likes in the less than a week it was uploaded. On social media platforms, Najafi's name has become a popular hashtag to spread word of protests and call for change.

"Every woman in this planet must have the opportunity to choose," one Twitter user wrote, using hashtags for Najafi and Amini's names. "What to wear and what to not. Without being harassed, or oppressed."
A video that many claimed showed Najafi went viral, but it turned out not to be her

Although many posts referencing Najafi solely use her name or an image of her, many included a video of a woman tying up a ponytail in a dimly lit street.

The video circulated widely on Sunday and Monday, with many people claiming it showed Najafi walking in the street without a head scarf in protest of the government. Since then, the actual woman in the video has spoken out saying she's not Najafi, according to multiple reporters.

Although the woman in the video clarified her identity, she told BBC Persian that she would fight for the "Mahsas and Hadis'."

"Gen Z is leading the protests in Iran right now and to see a beautiful, young woman gunned down in cold blood by security forces would move anyone," Dagres said about why Najafi has become a symbol for protesters, even if the viral video didn't actually show her. "There was something about that video of the young woman tying her hair, as if readying for battle, that spoke to many Iranians."

Iran's Soccer Team Covers Up Their National Emblem as Mahsa Amini Protests Continue


Natasha Dye
Thu, September 29, 2022

Iran wear jackets to cover up their country's symbols in protest

Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty

Players from Iran's national soccer team made a political statement before a World Cup warm-up match on Tuesday.

In a message to their country, Iranian team's entire roster took the field for their game against Senegal in black jackets, which pointedly covered up their nation's emblem on their jerseys during the national anthem.

The team's statement comes as the country continues to see civil unrest in response to the death of Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old citizen who died under police custody. Amini was arrested earlier this month when law enforcement found her not wearing a hijab. She died after being transported to Tehran's Vozara Detention Center. Police maintain that Amini's death was caused by a heart attack she had suffered.

However, Amini's family, as well as United Nations experts, believe she died after authorities beat and tortured her, per Newsweek. Protests and demonstrations have since broken out across the country.

None of the players or staff from Iran's national team have made statements regarding the situation to the media since the match, but several members of the team have addressed the topic on social media. "My heart really broke for Mahsa Amini and the likes of Mahsa Amini who are innocent of this," team forward Sardar Azmoun wrote in Iranian on Instagram.

Additionally, Azmoun acknowledged the risk he and his teammates took when they spoke out against the country. "At worst I'll be dismissed from the national team," he wrote. "No problem. I'd sacrifice that for one hair on the heads of Iranian women. This story will not be deleted. They can do whatever they want."

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Another team competing in the 2022 World Cup, Denmark, will also use their jerseys to make a statement. BBC reported that Denmark's team has decided to wear a "toned down" version of their regular jerseys in protest against host country Qatar's human rights failures and poor treatment of migrant workers, specifically at World Cup facilities.

Hummel, Denmark's sportswear manufacturer, stated, "We wish to make a statement about Qatar's human rights record and its treatment of the migrant workers that have built the country's World Cup stadiums." The company added that the new look will represent "the color of mourning."

Hummel said that although it will continue to support the Danish national team, Hummel "does not wish to be visible" during the World Cup, alleging that the tournament "has cost thousands of lives."

Iran arrests soccer player for supporting protests, as World Cup team grapples with danger and defiance

Henry Bushnell
Fri, September 30, 2022 

A former Iranian national soccer player was arrested on Thursday for expressing solidarity with the protests sweeping Iran, as several members of the current national team also broke their silence to lend support.

Millions of Iranians have taken to streets in recent weeks to protest the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who'd been arrested for allegedly wearing her headscarf too loosely. The nearly unprecedented wave of dissent against the Iranian regime, and in support of women's rights, has prompted a swift crackdown by the country's security forces. The response has resulted in the death of at least 83 people, activists told Reuters.

The crackdown has extended to soccer — in that Hossein Mahini, a World Cup veteran and longtime defender for Iran's top club, Persepolis, was reportedly detained for publicly supporting the protests; but also in that the current national team, according to players, was living under strict orders to stay silent.

Most of the two dozen players slated to represent their nation at the 2022 World Cup in November did stay silent last week, as they gathered for their final training camp ahead of the tournament. They played two games as the Iranian soccer federation (IFF), under pressure from the government, restricted media access; and as two spectators, demonstrating peacefully, were ejected from one match by police; and as cities burned back home.

Hossein Mahini (13, bottom row, second from left) was a member of Iran's team at the 2014 World Cup. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein, File)

Sardar Azmoun, a star striker, broke the silence on Sunday in an Instagram post. "At worst, I’ll be dismissed from the national team; no problem," he wrote in Farsi, according to rough translations. "I’d sacrifice that for one hair on the heads of Iranian women. This story will not be deleted. They can do whatever they want. Shame on you for killing so easily; long live Iranian women."

Soon thereafter, the post was deleted. Later, an apology from Azmoun was posted, and silence was restored. Several players blacked out their Instagram profile pictures. But some Iranians, including those risking their lives in the streets, criticized the players for not taking a risk and speaking up.

When the players wore black jackets during the national anthem before their Tuesday game, some Western media interpreted it as a silent statement in solidarity with protesters. But one Iranian activist, who runs the @OpenStadiums Twitter account, told Yahoo Sports that "it was just their normal jacket." She didn't interpret it as solidarity; the "national team is very much under surveillance of the [Iranian security] forces and they won't let them specifically do that," she said. None of the players have spoken about it.

Iran players break silence, support women

When the training camp concluded, though, they began speaking. "The last few days in the national team camp have been really hard for us," defender Morteza Pouraliganji wrote.

"Hello, now it's time to write the things after finishing the camp that I really wanted to tell you," Azmoun wrote on Wednesday, alongside a picture of the Iranian women's volleyball team. "My heart really broke for Mahsa Amini," he wrote as part of a message expressing solidarity with Iranian women.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh, another star forward, posted a black square and wrote, in part, according to an Instagram translation: "Due to camp conditions and rules regarding avoiding cyberspace, we were not allowed to operate. We are the soldiers of [the Iranian] people and we will always stand by our people. ... It is not too much to ask for their simplest human rights. These people should be treated with more dignity and respect."

Midfielder Saman Ghoddos, who was born in Sweden and now plays in England, wrote in Farsi and English: "As an Iranian who wasn’t raised in Iran, I am thrilled and suprised [sic] by the courage of the women of my country. These kind and brave people deserve the best life. And to have the right to all the social services in modern world. In the protesting times, police have responsibility to protect them especially women and kids and put them under their protection. These people haven’t committed anything bad. They just want their human rights which they want to see happen. Long live my dear Iran and its amazing people."

In a separate caption, Ghoddos wrote: "Rest in peace to everyone who lost their lives fighting for freedom. #MahsaAmini."

The biggest wave of social media posts, however, came Friday after news surfaced that Mahini, who played 23 games for the national team from 2011-17, had been arrested for "promot[ing] disorder and chaos," according to Iranian state media. His house had also reportedly been raided. More than a dozen current national team players posted pictures of Mahini, 36, to their Instagram stories.

"Now footballers see how the actual situation [is]," the OpenStadiums activist, who protects her identity to avoid retribution from Iranian authorities, told Yahoo Sports.

Many of the posts, though, have been measured, and have opened the players up to continued criticism. Alongside a soccer picture on Wednesday, two weeks after Amini's death, goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand wrote, vaguely: "The voice of the masses is the voice of God." One commenter asked him: "Did you wake up from sleep? How much is the World Cup worth to you? More than the lives of our own people?"

In this Sept. 19 photo taken by an individual not employed by the Associated Press and obtained by the AP outside Iran, a police motorcycle burns during a protest over the death of a young woman who had been detained for violating the country's conservative dress code, in downtown Tehran. (AP Photo)

Calls to expel Iran from World Cup

Multiple players have tried to frame their national team endeavors as representative of the Iranian people. To many, though, they are inextricably linked to the government.

"The Iranian [soccer federation], run by ex-commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, is an important ambassador of the Islamic Republic and is acting in line with the repressive regime," OpenStadiums wrote in a Friday open letter. "We do not believe this team represents us or our values as Iranian citizens any longer."

That letter, addressed to FIFA president Gianni Infantino, called on FIFA to expel Iran from the 2022 World Cup. It cited two FIFA statutes, one of which claims the global soccer governing body is "committed to respecting all internationally recognized human rights and shall strive to promote the protection of these rights."

The other states: "FIFA remains neutral in matters of politics and religion. Exceptions may be made with regard to matters affected by FIFA's statutory objectives."

FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday morning. Iran is scheduled to open its World Cup campaign on Nov. 21 against England, and conclude Group B play on Nov. 29 against the United States.

Danger for Iranian athletes

Mahini's arrest is not the first time the Iranian regime has punished athletes for opposing it. Most infamously, wrestler Navid Afkari was sentenced to death and executed in 2020. He'd been accused, without proof, of killing a security guard during anti-government protests in 2018, and allegedly tortured into a confession.

The national soccer team also has a history of activism, though much of it has been suppressed. In 2009, several players wore green wristbands during a World Cup qualifier in apparent support of an opposition presidential candidate who was disputing the results of an election. They were subsequently "retired" from the national team, according to reports at the time, though a few later returned.

One of them, Ali Karimi, who played for Bayern Munich during his 18-year career, has been a prominent and vocal supporter of the current protests, and critic of the regime. State-affiliated media have called for his arrest. His house was seized by authorities earlier this week, but he is reportedly out of the country and safe.

Voria Ghafouri, a veteran defender who played at the 2019 Asian Cup, has also been a frequent social critic. He was summoned by authorities in 2019 after he criticized Iran's foreign policy, and has not played for the national team since.

Iowa State students protest Iranian government's repression: 'We will be their voice!'


Phillip Sitter, Ames Tribune
Fri, September 30, 2022 

Iranian students and recent graduates of Iowa State University sought to make not only their voices heard Thursday, but also the voices of their friends, family and other fellow citizens at home fighting government repression while mostly silenced to the world by internet censorship.

Iran has seen protests and the government's subsequent crackdown in recent weeks after the death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, in the custody of the country's so-called "morality police," who arrest women whom they perceive have improperly covered their hair with a hijab.

Women in Iran have been required to wear hijabs in public since the 1979 Islamic Revolution brought to power the country's religious authorities.

Amini collapsed at a detention center, fell into a coma and died three days later, after having been reportedly beaten on the head, according to a statement by acting U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Nada Al-Nashif.

Amini's death came after expanded street patrols by the morality police, and the Human Rights Office had received "numerous, and verified, videos of violent treatment of women, including slapping women across the face, beating them with batons and throwing them into police vans," Al-Nashif's statement added.

Iranian students at Iowa State University protest against the Iranian government for brutality against women in front of the university Parks Library on Thursday in Ames. The students gathered after Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian woman, was killed last week by the Iranian “morality police” for not fully covering her hair.

More: How protests in Iran over Mahsa Amini's death 'forever moved the debate' over women's rights

"Today, Mahsa Amini is Iran's George Floyd," said a recorded statement broadcast at Thursday's protest on Iowa State's campus near Parks Library, referencing a Black Minneapolis man murdered in custody by a white police officer in 2020, which sparked protests in the U.S.

About 50 people took part at the beginning of Thursday's protest, shouting pleas for justice for Amini and Iran, saying women and Iran deserve freedom.

"Those who have no choice, we will be their voice!" was one chant.

Some women at the protest cut their hair in public as an act of defiance against the Iranian regime.

Most students and recent graduates who spoke with the Ames Tribune during and before the protest did not use their full names and often partly covered their faces with cloth masks because of the risk of retribution from the Iranian government, especially against their family and friends at home.

The regime's reach could extend inside the U.S. The U.S. Department of Justice announced in August that a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had been charged in a murder-for-hire plot targeting former national security adviser John Bolton. Last year, four Iranians were charged in a kidnapping plot against an Iranian dissident U.S. citizen in New York City.

Zohreh Parvini, who's from the city of Kermanshah and just started a doctorate program at Iowa State, said given how people are risking their lives much more so in Iran to protest, "That's the least we could do here," to give people hope.

Sarah, who's from the Iranian capital of Tehran and recently defended her doctorate, said the government's shutdown of the internet to censor information about the protests affects phones and apps, too.

The use of virtual private networks can at least temporarily get people access, but people like Zohreh's parents aren't tech-savvy enough to use VPNs.

“Mary,” using a family nickname for her, who helped organize the protest and spoke with the Tribune on Wednesday, graduated last spring with a master's degree from Iowa State. She's from Tehran and has lived in the U.S. since 2019.

Her sister in Iran uses VPNs, so she at least hears from her every couple days, “‘We are fine. Don’t worry.’”

An Iranian student at Iowa State cuts her hair in a show of defiance Thursday. Thousands of Iranian people are protesting for the rights of women and their bodies.

Mary knows she’s taking a risk by speaking out. Her parents are scared for her.

“If I don’t get to go back to Iran, OK, I accept that,” and she can visit her family abroad, she said.

That risk is worth it to her because she sees the bravery of girls in her country, taking off their headscarfs and burning them in front of the police, risking being shot. “If they are that brave to do that on the streets, I need to do my part.”

A lot of her friends go out to protest every night, and their social media posts educate people on what to do if they’re shot or arrested. “We are just trying to amplify their voices and help them as much as we can,” by the letting the world know what’s happening.

Mary said she's had one experience with the morality police, when she was 18. She said it's a common thing for women to be approached by the morality police walking down the street. A van pulls up, women are pushed inside and taken to a police station.

At the station, “just like a criminal,” women are booked and have their picture taken for the state’s records.

The stops are random, Mary said. Some women are just unlucky to live and work close by a police station and have to deal with them more often.

“We’ve had a lot of people dead in their custody, for many different reasons, but this time, this was different," Mary explained.

Amini was a woman from outside the city, visiting with her brother. And people don’t buy the government’s story that Amini had a heart attack.

“We are sure that she was beaten to death. This is a 22-year-old, innocent girl, not protesting,” Mary said.

Mary said reformists have been at work for decades in Iran, but, “We are just right now sure that this government is not going to accept any reforms. Enough is enough. We just don’t need this regime controlling our oil money, our reputation, our bodies, even if we’re covering our hair or not. I’m just hoping for a big revolution to come.”

She’s proud of feminist movements in the U.S., but “you cannot be a feminist and you cannot talk about women’s rights if you do not amplify the voices of women right now in Iran protesting. They’re in a true war. They’re getting shot for this.”

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement the nation condemns Amini's death, and "We mourn with her loved ones and with the Iranian people."

The U.S. imposed sanctions on several top morality police, intelligence, military and paramilitary leaders, and acted to try to open the flow of digital information to people in Iran.

There is no active Iranian student organization at Iowa State, but Iran has been the fifth most-represented nation by international students at the university since at least the fall of 2017, according to enrollment data, with 124 Iranian students on campus this fall.

Amin, a recent graduate from Tehran, said Thursday the volunteers who organized the protest raised money from students and Iranian faculty members, and are hoping to get an Iranian Students and Scholars Association set up this year.

How Iowa universities handle investments with companies operating in Iran

The Iowa Board of Regents is required by state law each year to report universities' investment ties with companies that do business in Iran. The state's public universities had no direct holdings in any such companies as of June 30, according to the latest report.

Iowa State University and the University of Iowa did have indirect holdings with several companies that do business in Iran. Indirect funds are part of managed investments, such as mutual funds.

Iowa State's indirect holdings with companies doing business in Iran totaled more than $377,000 — mostly with Volkswagen, Siemens and POSCO, a South Korean steelmaker. The University of Iowa's indirect holdings totaled more than $1.9 million, also mostly among the same companies, with the addition of Porsche.

The University of Northern Iowa's investment portfolios are mingled with the University of Iowa's, according to Josh Lehman, spokesperson for the Board of Regents.

The Board of Regents is part of a statewide contract with ISS ESG, an investment analysis company, to scrutinize companies using public sources. The board then sends letters each year to companies to encourage them to cease prohibited operations, but divestment of indirect holdings in those companies is not required, Lehman said.

Iowa law requires the same scrutiny of companies that do business in Sudan or boycott Israel, and the board reports on those investments as well. "The board holds no direct investment in individual companies that requires divestment," Lehman said.

He said the universities' investment portfolios maintain liquidity, add flexibility in making long-term investments and grow endowment funds, among other financial roles. "Faculty and staff retirement funds have no correlation with the university-managed investments," he added.

Phillip Sitter covers education for the Ames Tribune, including Iowa State University and PreK-12 schools in Ames and elsewhere in Story County. Phillip can be reached via email at psitter@gannett.com. He is on Twitter @pslifeisabeauty.

This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Iranian community at Iowa State protests government repression at home

‘LOTR: The Rings Of Power’s Nazanin Boniadi Calls For Action After Death Of Mahsa Amini In Iran – Guest Column

Nazanin Boniadi
Fri, September 30, 2022 


Editor’s note: The death of Mahsa Amini earlier this month after being detained by Iran’s morality police for allegedly not wearing her hijab according to official dictates has sparked outrage and protests within the Islamic Republic and around the world, with Global Day of Action for Iran set for Saturday with rallies around the globe (more information below). Currently seen as one of the stars of Prime Video’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Iran-born actress and Amnesty International UK ambassador Nazanin Boniadi reflects on Amini’s tragic death and the potentially pivotal time for her homeland.

Two months ago, in San Diego Comic-Con’s Hall H, I dedicated my The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power character Bronwyn to the brave women of my homeland Iran, who have been at the forefront of the fight for freedom for more than four decades. Little did I know in that moment how significant those words would be today.

More from Deadline
Iran Regime Rounds Up Showbiz & Sports Personalities; Singer Shervin Hajipour, Soccer Player Hossein Mahini Among Detainees

By now, most of you have heard of the name Mahsa “Zhina” Amini, the 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who was arrested on September 13 by Iran’s “morality police” for violating the country’s draconian dress code for women, and who entered a coma and died just three days later while in custody. Mahsa’s family — who have said she had no pre-existing health conditions — were denied access to her medical records. When her father visited the coroner’s office, her body was fully covered and he could only see a glimpse of her leg, which was bruised. Other women who were arrested with Mahsa have provided witness testimony that she pleaded with the police to show mercy as they beat her inside the patrol van.

And one only need watch the countless videos from Iran of peaceful protesters being beaten, to understand the brutality the security forces are capable of. The regime is rounding up the likes of singer Shervin Hajipour, star soccer player Hossein Mahini and others for speaking out. More than 70 protesters have reportedly been killed since protests started on September 16, including women and children, and hundreds more injured by security forces. Iranian authorities have reported at least 1,200 arrests during the protests including prominent activists and journalists.

The image of Mahsa in a coma in a hospital bed went viral online and across social media. And the hashtag #MahsaAmini was shared globally more than 150 million times — almost double the population of Iran. It is of little surprise that the Iranian authorities have felt so threatened by this movement that they have once again disrupted the internet in Iran to stop people from organizing and to be able to crack down on protests with impunity.

What we have witnessed in the two weeks since Mahsa’s untimely death, is nothing short of the first female-led revolution of our time. Iranian women caused a paradigm shift as they took to the streets to burn their compulsory hijabs and cut off their hair in protest, while men joined them en force. As have several high profile Iranian athletes, actors and filmmakers. Celebrated Iranian actress Katayoun Riahi courageously gave an interview from Iran without her mandatory headscarf, in solidarity with Mahsa. She said that “people are no longer afraid of prison because Iran has become a prison itself.”

As women in the U.S. are experiencing the reversal of hard won gains in bodily autonomy, Mahsa’s fate reminds us to stay vigilant and never take our freedoms for granted. She forced the world to reckon with our complacency in protecting the rights of women, but as protesters started chanting “Woman! Life! Freedom!” — the antithesis of the anti-woman, pro-martyrdom regime that crushes their liberties — slogans started to include “death to the dictator,” and it became increasingly obvious that their demands were not only about compulsory clothing regulations, but for an end to the entire theocratic system. And as men have joined in this chant, women have included them in the struggle by rhythmically chanting back “Man! Motherland! Liberty!” — a unity that is striking fear in the heart of a system built on the oppression and segregation of women. It is an undeniable fact that any government that is anti-woman is anti-human.

Since the inception of the Islamic Republic in 1979, women in Iran have not only been fighting against compulsory hijab but also for their right to choose what they can study and what jobs they can hold. Women are forbidden from becoming judges and from holding the highest political positions in the country. There are no laws that protect women from domestic or gender-based violence.

The bitter reality is that the Islamic Republic has become an apartheid state for women, who are segregated from men in the workplace, in classrooms, and at beaches; are banned from attending sports arenas, riding bicycles, and singing solo in public; and have to sit at the back of the bus.

To negate these as “cultural differences” dismisses the countless Iranian women who are risking everything for their basic rights. It is offensive, and more importantly it is a dangerously false narrative designed to protect the existing systems of patriarchal misogyny within such counties. Cultural norms do not need to be enforced by threat of death.

It’s hard to believe that this is the same country in which women won the right to vote eight years before women in Switzerland and that once boasted a lauded national ballet company.

Perhaps it is precisely the understanding of the fragility of our freedoms that has galvanized the world around Mahsa and the plight of women in Iran. Not since the anti-apartheid movement of South Africa have we seen this level of global attention to the fight to end any kind of segregation anywhere.

But how do we — the creative community — turn our outrage into meaningful action and prevent the Iranian authorities from crushing yet another uprising? One way is to use our profile and platforms to spotlight the injustice, like we did in this video released today featuring Oscar winners Olivia Colman and Ariana DeBose, Succession‘s Brian Cox, Kate Beckinsale, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The Handmaid’s Tale’s Bradley Whitford and more.

There is a lesson to be learned from Alfre Woodard, Danny Glover, Blair Underwood and several other longtime anti-apartheid activists in the creative community, who in 1989 founded Artists for a Free South Africa and were pivotal in helping turn the tide of apartheid. They successfully used their platforms to attract media attention, mobilize people to support the struggle, and created transnational networks. And that’s exactly what we need for Iran right now. Here’s how you can help:

1. Since there are no domestic avenues for justice in Iran, Amnesty International has launched a global action calling on people across the world to sign a petition targeting UN member states, asking them to urgently set up an independent UN mechanism to investigate and ensure accountability for the most serious crimes under international law committed in Iran. We are also calling on people to target their home government’s ministry of foreign affairs to support the establishment of this investigative mechanism.

2. We need the world to send a strong message to the Iranian authorities that their crimes will not remain uninvestigated and unpunished. Please continue to amplify the voices of the Iranian people on social media by following and sharing information from credible activists and organizations. Please use the correct hashtags in these posts: #MahsaAmini and #IranProtests. The Islamic Republic cyber army has been busy trying to disrupt the momentum by introducing the wrong spellings for these hashtags.

3. Show up to protests and network with Iranian activists for strategic actions, like making informative videos.

4. Donate to credible, Iran-focused human rights organizations — such as Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA), Abdorrahman Boroumand Center and Amnesty International Iran — that document and report rights abuses. And apps like Toosheh that help Iranians circumvent censorship and gain internet freedom.

As creatives, we rely heavily on the freedom of expression in our work, so we must do everything we can to protect it wherever it is violated. Artists have a unique ability to reach the masses and impact substantive change, which is perhaps why the silencing of artists has become a hallmark of oppressive states like the Islamic Republic. We owe it to our counterparts in Iran to stand with them as they fight for their most basic rights.

So, now I’m asking you — our greater artistic community — to join us in our fight to end gender apartheid in Iran. In the words of Bronwyn, who asked the Southlanders in Episode 5 of The Rings of Power as a call to action: “Who among you will stand with me? Who among you will stand and fight?”

More information on the Global Day of Action for Iran can be found here.

Kurdish exiles back Iran protests but deny organizing them









Iran-Protests Kurdish Opposition Protesters gather in Sulaimaniyah on Sept. 28, 2022, protest the killing of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian Kurdish woman after she was arrested in Tehran by morality police for wearing her headscarf improperly. Iran has accused Kurdish opposition groups in exile of orchestrating the wave of protests across the country over the past two weeks. But Kurdish activists say the government is just trying to scapegoat them to distract from the domestic anger fueling the unrest. (AP Photo/Hawre Khalid, Metrography)


SALAR SALIM
Fri, September 30, 2022 at 11:12 AM·6 min read

SULIMANIYAH, Iraq (AP) — Dara Qureshi scrolls through the contacts on his phone, each name an alias for activists across the border in neighboring Iran, where protests have been raging for two weeks.

Qureshi, a member of one of many Iranian Kurdish opposition parties exiled in Iraq, responds to one of them, “Brwa,” who asks how to access Starlink, a satellite constellation operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, after the business magnate promised to allow Iranians affected by state-imposed internet restrictions to use it.

“What is your advice, comrade?” writes the unknown activist. Qureshi makes inquiries, knowing there are only a few precious minutes before the internet will cut out for the person on the other side.

The support that Kurdish exiles like Qureshi have given to protesters in Iran have fueled allegations by Iranian authorities that the protests, which have spread to over 40 cities, were entirely organized and buttressed by foreign elements.

But Iranian Kurdish exiles say their role is small. They say the Iranian government is trying to scapegoat them to divert attention away from the widespread anger fueling protests that erupted nationwide, have brought in multiple ethnic groups and have been focused on the government's treatment of women.

The protests erupted after a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, died in custody. Morality police in the Iranian capital, Tehran, arrested her for allegedly not wearing the mandatory Islamic headscarf properly.

This week, Iran sharply stepped up its military operations against Iraq-based Iranian Kurdish opposition groups, launching three sets of drone and missile attacks targeting their party bases in northern Iraq, killing at least nine. The strikes drew condemnation from Iraqi officials and the international community. Iran’s ambassador to Iraq was later summoned by the Foreign Ministry.

Iran also has cracked down on others after Amini's death, announcing Friday that it has arrested nine foreigners over the demonstrations.

The London-based Amnesty International said Friday it has acquired leaked government documents showing that Iran ordered its security forces to “severely confront” protesters. It said security forces have killed at least 52 people since protests over the Amini’s death began nearly two weeks ago.

Iranian state TV has reported that at least 41 protesters and police have been killed since the demonstrations began Sept. 17. Hundreds of people have been arrested.

The Kurdish opposition parties say their reach is limited to majority Kurdish regions in western Iran.

“It’s true the political parties here issued a call for protests, but the ones who went into the street and organized are inside Iran; it has nothing to do with party proclamations,” said Rosaline Kamangir, 32, an Iranian women’s rights activist and a Kurd who is regularly in touch with female protesters inside Iran.

“The organizers are local, and perhaps they see eye-to-eye with the parties, ultimately they are acting based on their own beliefs,” she said.

The opposition groups jointly issued calls for a general strike and protests in the western Kurdish region of Iran after the death of the 22-year-old Amini.

With her family origins in the Kurdish city of Saqqez, Amini’s death has sparked particular anger in Iran’s Kurdish regions. Kurds refer to her by her Kurdish name, Zhina. Iranians often have an official name and another they use more regularly, and Mahsa is a Persian name on her official records.

The Kurdish majority areas are home to a decades-old separatist movement that precedes the 1979 Islamic revolution, and in past decades it has morphed into a low-level guerrilla insurgency that trades fire with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.

But the protests have not taken a particularly Kurdish nationalist tone. Instead, as in the rest of the country, Amini has become a symbol of the oppression of women, rallying anger against Iran's repressive policies. Many women protesters burned their hijabs during the rallies and cut off their hair.

“I didn’t know Mahsa, but her death pushed me to protest,” said Nisreen, a woman in the Kurdish Iranian town of Bukan. “Her death made me angry. Women in Iran are oppressed, we have no opportunities,” the 34-year-old said, speaking to the AP via WhatsApp on condition her last name not be used, fearing reprisal.

The first protest she attended in Bukan began peacefully, “then the shooting and arrests started,” she said. On one occasion, the person standing next to her was hit.

Opposition parties have clout in her area, she said. “But that is not why I am protesting.”

Every household in Iran’s Kurdish regions knows someone linked to the Kurdish opposition parties in exile or has a family member who belongs to them, activists and residents said.

Banned inside Iran, the main parties based in Iraq are the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Iran; Komala, which has Marxist leanings; and the Kurdistan Free Life Party, or PJAK.

“Everyone among us has a relative protesting in Iran, everyone knows someone who has been arrested,” said Kawser Fattahi, 33, a member of Komala, her fingers trembling while holding up a cigarette. Two of her cousins in Iran were taken and haven’t been heard from in a week, she said. Qureshi’s uncle was detained during a protest in Bukan.

Fattahi had been at her Komala party’s headquarters compound in the Iraqi Kurdish town of Koya when it was bombed in one of the Iranian strikes. She spoke to the AP in Sulimaniyah, where she arrived Wednesday.

After the bombings, party members dispersed from their compound and took up residence with friends or in the rugged mountains.

Fattahi left her hometown Bukan in Iran a few years ago, fearing arrest because of her political activities distributing party leaflets.

Her mother and brother are both protesting, she said. The last time she saw them was when they crossed the border illegally to see her some months back.

Like most party members she keeps two phones, one for daily use in Iraq and another, to speak to relatives and party affiliates back home.

Because of the danger in crossing the border from Iraq, the opposition parties’ presence and activities inside Iran have always been limited. Social media is used to encourage supporters to take part in protests and conduct general strikes, said Fattahi.

But now, with widespread internet outages in Iran, their supporters have not been able to access social media.

“Most of our communication requires the internet,” said Qureshi. “And when they call us, it’s always from an unregistered number.”

Kamangir received hundreds of messages a day at the start of the protests in mid-September. Now she receives bursts of updates every two days, she said.

“Today, it’s gone dark,” she said.

Iranian protesters battle internet censorship and risk crackdowns to post videos from Mahsa Amini rallies

Lindsay Dodgson
Thu, September 29, 2022

Iranians are protesting in the streets after the death of Mahsa Amini.

SOPA Images/Getty Images

Footage has circulated on social media of protests in Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini.

Iranians have maneuvered around internet outages and restrictions implemented by the government.

Though there are risks, internet-savvy Iranians are willing to take the chance.

In one video that has been viewed nearly 100,000 times on TikTok, an Iranian girl speaks with her parents about how nobody is safe in their country, saying "the regime kills and doesn't feel guilty," according to creator @persian_femme's translation. The girl, who says in the video that she's 14-years-old, has her face blurred.

As Iranian authorities have periodically shut off internet access in the country since the start of antigovernment protests in earlier this month, videos of protestors, activists, and average citizens in their homes have broken out onto Instagram and TikTok and been shared with audiences all over the world. A wave of footage has shown women in Iran protesting in the streets, including cutting their hair and removing their hijabs, in solidarity with Mahsa Amini — a woman who died in police custody on September 16, who witnesses say was beaten for allegedly breaking Iran's compulsory rules on wearing a hijab.

Iranians have been able to document the brutality they currently face through savvy social media use, maneuvering around internet outages and restrictions on WhatsApp and Instagram. The hashtag #MahsaAmini has appeared on hundreds of thousands of Instagram posts, millions of tweets, and TikToks with over 700 million views in total. But there are also dangers to being so transparent on the internet and fears that authorities could use protesters' posts against them.

"Iranians know that if they actually take photos, videos, they put themselves in danger — that's a thing they definitely know," journalist Niki Mahjoub, who has covered women's rights in Iran and the ongoing protests, told Insider. "But with all of that, they want to change the Islamic Republic narrative about what happened … Nobody should be killed because they just don't want to wear hijabs."
Internet blocks have happened before, and Iranians know how to get around them

The Supreme Council of Cyberspace is responsible for the controls being placed on the internet in Iran, which it has said is a matter of "national security."

"Of course, their definition of national security includes repressing anyone who stands up for their rights," Mahsa Alimardani, a senior researcher with human rights organization Article 19, told Insider. Controls have spread so far as to restrict all direct messaging on video games, for example.

"They also want there to be no flow or documentation of the crimes of the Islamic Republic," Alimardani said. "Social media does not allow them to control the narrative and propaganda they often try to push through the state-controlled media."

On state-controlled television, protestors are depicted as "violent rioters destroying ambulances," Alimardani added, while citizen media has alleged that ambulances have been used to transport armed security forces for the purpose of arresting protestors.

Social media posts have also aided in documenting death counts in the protests, Alimardini said. Iranian officials have acknowledged at least 41 deaths in the demonstrations, although rights groups and activists contend that the actual number is greater.

Iran has shut down access to the internet multiple times in the past as protests have flared, most notably instituting a near total shut down in 2019 after increases in fuel prices drove demonstrators into the streets. Hundreds were killed in security force's crackdown following the internet blackout, according to rights groups.

Women have been cutting their hair and removing their hijabs in solidarity with Mahsa Amini.

picture alliance/Getty Images

Demonstrators in this year's protests have been more effective at circumventing internet censorship through tools such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) that mask their location, with several activists in Iran telling the Los Angeles Times that their methods for avoiding government tracking them online have advanced in recent years.

"Iranians learned how to play hide and seek with the government," Mahjoub told Insider. "They choose different platforms to work with the way that they want to tell the story."

In response, Iran has a sprawling surveillance apparatus that it uses to monitor online activity and in-person protests. Last month, an Iranian official stated that authorities would use facial recognition technology to enforce its mandatory Hijab laws. Bot accounts have also targeted Iranian Instagram users who post feminist content, according to Coda Story, swarming women's accounts with fake followers.

But there is also a lot of renewed hope associated with the movement driving recent demonstrations. Amini's death has brought the whole country together, Mahjoub said, uniting people with different backgrounds and opinions, because "it's not a thing that a government should do — kill somebody."

This solidarity is spreading further thanks to Iranians finding ways around government censorship. They are "amongst the most tech savvy population in the world," Alimardani said.

"This is not only a women led movement, but it's a Gen Z led movement," she said. "Solidarity is crucial — it helps embolden and empower protesters knowing their fellow Gen Z peers outside of Iran are sharing content and standing with them."

Iranian women have been rebelling against restrictions since the Islamic Revolution in 1979 – with renewed hope that protests this time will end differently

Pardis Mahdavi, Provost and Executive Vice President, The University of Montana
Thu, September 29, 2022 

THE CONVERSATION

Women holding up photographs of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini during a demonstration in Arbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on Sept. 24, 2022.

Safin Hamed/AFP via Getty Images

Shouts of “death to the dictator” and “woman, life, freedom” are reverberating throughout the streets of Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman, while in custody of the “morality police” in Tehran.

These protests have echoes from past resistance movements. For the past two decades I have been studying gender and sexual politics in post-revolutionary Iran through on-the-ground ethnographic fieldwork. For some 40 years following the Feb. 11, 1979, Iranian Revolution, when Ayatollah Khomeini came to power and overthrew the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, people have been rising up against the brutality of the regime in both urban and rural areas.

Today, these protests have been gaining increased momentum and international attention, giving many Iranians inside and outside of Iran some glimmers of hope.

Islamists’ resistance to westernization

Support for the Revolution grew out of many Iranians’ desire to bring equality and democracy to Iran. They criticized the monarchy as being overly deferential to the United States and were frustrated with increasing gaps between rich and poor.

The Islamists were most critical of westernization, which they saw as violating Islamic tenets and leading Iranians morally astray. They vowed to return Iran to Iranians and to re-center Iranian culture.

To do so, the Islamist regime juxtaposed its rule with everything that it believed to be wrong about “the West.” At the top of the list of critiques was what the regime viewed as loose morals. These loose morals were exemplified in the consumption of alcohol and women’s wearing miniskirts and heavy makeup and flaunting their hair and curves of their bodies in public.

As Khomeini ushered in the Islamists to power, a new era of austerity was born. Khomeini replaced the shah’s brutal police squad, SAVAK, with an equally if not more brutal Revolutionary Guard and created a new unit referred to as the “morality police.”

This era is perhaps best exemplified in the Khomeini quote that was painted across buildings and billboards in Tehran: “The Islamic Republic is not about fun, it is about morality. There is no fun to be had in the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Controlling women’s fertility

Alongside the changes at home, Khomeini also engaged the country in a decadelong war with its neighbor Iraq.

Worried about the rising death toll coming out of the Iranian Revolution, combined with increasing numbers of soldiers needed for the Iran-Iraq war, the Islamists realized that they would need to increase their population quickly, according to demographic researchers. Thus, in the 1980s Khomeini instituted a series of policies in Iran to encourage families to have more children.

As a result, the birth rate in Iran in the 1980s swelled to an average of 3.5 children per family, up 30% from the prior decade.

A decade later, the Islamists realized that the population boom would need government support. Infrastructure would have to be strengthened and jobs created. The government did a complete turnaround and replaced its policy with family planning messages broadcast on the radio and television encouraging families to have fewer children. Sex education courses and free family planning resources were required for all couples who wished to be married. By 1994 the number of women using family planning was up 30% from 1989.

When the new millennium was ushered in, fully two-thirds of the country’s population was under the age of 21. These young people were born into the Islamic Republic of Iran that Khomeini and the Islamists had created: Women were told to wear long black cloaks from head to toe, covering every inch and curve of their bodies; the most brutal people were members of the morality police, watching every move and any strands of hair that escaped covering. If young people were found holding hands, attending a party or reading a book, they were deemed immoral by the whims of a mercurial regime.

This generation had never known the supposed opulence of the monarchy. And as its members became more frustrated and more educated, the critiques of Iran’s past drilled into them by the Islamists made less sense.
Challenging the morality police

Mohammad Khatami, who took over as president in August 1997, sought to harmonize Islamic rule with the needs of a changing population and a modernizing world.

Young people, who formed the majority of the population, had found their voice. They began challenging the morality police by pushing their headscarves back millimeter by millimeter, holding hands in public and organizing spontaneous street gatherings.

Between 2000 and 2007, I conducted ethnographic fieldwork in the cities of Tehran, Shiraz, Esfahan and Mashad, following what young people referred to as Iran’s Sexual Revolution. The resisters demanded a more democratic regime focused on solving issues like unemployment and infrastructure challenges rather than on policing their bodies. During my research in Iran on sexual and social movements, I also had several run-ins with the morality police and experienced their brutality firsthand.

These young people’s revolution was fought through the language of morality using their bodies, their choices in outerwear, makeup and hairstyles. They defied the morality police by sliding their headscarves back, wearing layers of makeup and eye-catching outerwear, dancing in the streets and holding hands or kissing in public.

The government responded by cracking down and tightening its grip on the moral behavior of young people. Increased raids and public floggings were meant to send a strong message. But young people persisted in their resistance.

In 2005, when conservative candidate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was elected president, the sexual revolution came under heightened threat.

Unlike his predecessor, Ahmadinejad had no interest in finding ways to work with the growing youth population of Iran or in more progressive interpretations of Islam. He ordered the morality police to crack down on young people, raiding homes and parties and arresting women on the streets who dared to violate Islamist rules. Public floggings increased, as did arrests of scholars, feminists and journalists. The conservatives wanted to send a message.

The emboldened young revolutionaries continued pushing for change. These movements came to a head in 2009 when, despite not receiving the popular vote, Ahmadinejad was reelected as president.

Led by the same young people who resisted the morality police during the sexual revolution, a new movement was born in the immediate aftermath of the 2009 elections. This was called the “Sabze,” or Green Movement. People took to the streets of Iran chanting “where is my vote?” and “not my president.”

An Iranian sporting a green ribbon on her arm lights a candle in front of a picture of Neda Agha-Soltan, a young Iranian woman who was killed in 2009. 

Marwan Naamani/AFP via Getty Images

A catalyzing moment for this movement was the chilling murder of Neda Agha-Soltan. She was killed in June 2009 simply for being at one of demonstrations where one of the bloodiest clashes between protesters, the Revolutionary Guard and the morality police took place. Her death was captured on film and shared with the world.

On the 40th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution in 2019, the streets of Iran were once again filled with resisters, many of whom had participated in street protests since the early 2000s. These same children of the revolution and Iran-Iraq war organized efforts such as #MyStealthyFreedom that featured women photographing themselves without headscarves in public in Iran and joining the global #MeToo movement.
Demanding accountability

By 2019 disenchantment with the regime had spread from the highly educated young people in the urban centers to even many of the most religiously devout families in some rural areas who had been previous supporters of the regime.

Iranians of all backgrounds facing rising oil prices and unemployment as a result of years of sanctions were increasingly losing faith in their government. Many no longer subscribed to the rhetoric about restoring moral order.

Today’s street protests are taking place in more than 50 cities throughout the country and have drawn the attention and support of the international community. These protests are both a refrain of past protests as well as a renewal of courage and hope.

As in the past, since Sept. 16, 2022, activists are taking to the streets to challenge a regime steeped in a rhetoric of harshly interpreted morality rather than governing with the best intentions of the people. And as in the protests of 2009 and 2019, they are calling for accountability of the government’s shortcomings, as well as highlighting the poverty that rages throughout the country – along with the pain of the people.

This article is republished from The Conversation, an independent nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts. It was written by: Pardis Mahdavi, The University of Montana. 

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