New protests rock Iran as alarm grows

IRANIANS took to the streets in new protests against the clerical authorities overnight despite an internet shutdown, as rights groups warned yesterday that authorities were committing a “massacre” to quell the demonstrations.

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The protests, initially sparked by anger over the rising cost of living, have now become a movement against the theocratic regime that has ruled Iran since the 1979 revolution and have already lasted two weeks.

The mass rallies are one of the biggest challenges to the rule of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, coming in the wake of Israel’s 12-day war against the Islamic republic in June, which was backed by the US.

Videos posted to social media showed large crowds taking to the streets in new protests in several Iranian cities including the capital Tehran and Mashhad in the east, where images showed vehicles set on fire.