Activists supporting the wave of protests against the death of young Mahsa Amini in Iran hacked the country’s state television channel. A live speech by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was interrupted and overlaid by images of the cleric surrounded by flames.
“The blood of our young people drips from their fingers”, was one of the phrases displayed on the screen during the broadcast this Saturday (8) night. “It’s time to pack your furniture […] and find another place to settle his family outside of Iran,” read another message.
In addition to the flames, targets were superimposed on Khamenei’s face. Black and white photographs of Amini and three other women murdered during the protests were also displayed.
The hacking action lasted a few seconds and was claimed by the group Edalat-e Ali (Justice of Ali, in Portuguese). When the recording ended, the state channel presenter appeared tense and with his eyes fixed on the camera. Iranian news agency Tasnim attributed the action to what it called “anti-revolutionary agents”.
A series of protests erupted in Iran after the death on 16 September of a 22-year-old Kurdish girl. She died three days after being arrested by the moral police in Tehran for allegedly not wearing the hijab, the Islamic headscarf, properly.
At least 19 children have been killed amid brutal crackdowns on protests, the organization Human Rights in Iran reported on Sunday. In total, 185 people have died, including 20 security forces. Most of the murders took place in Sistan-Baluchistan province.
Despite the repression, protesters returned to protest in several cities across the country on Saturday night. In Tehran, activists took to the streets and chanted “death to the dictator”. Images published on social networks show a banner placed on a viaduct in the center of the capital with the phrase “We are no longer afraid. Let’s fight”.
Two members of the security forces were reportedly killed by an armed mob in Tehran, according to state news agency IRNA. Another reportedly died in Sanandaj, the capital of Iranian Kurdistan.
In Saqez, Mahsa Amini’s hometown, students marched waving handkerchiefs over their heads and chanting “Woman, life, freedom.”
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