Young Man Killed by Rioters in Iran: Prosecutor
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A young man aged 26 was killed by rioters in Gohardasht, a neighborhood in the city of Karaj, west of Tehran, the prosecutor general of Alborz Province said.
“Amid riots in Gohardasht over the past few nights, a bullet hit and killed a young man who was among the rioters,” Hajireza Shakarami told Tasnim on Sunday.
He added that the bullet hit him in the back, killing the 26-year-old man on the spot.
The prosecutor stressed that investigations are underway about the incident.
During the protests, three police forces were seriously injured by knife-wielding and stone-throwing attackers, he added.
Limited protests against economic conditions have been held in Shiraz, Isfahan, Ahvaz and Karaj over the past few days. The protests have been largely described as peaceful without any major instance of violence.
Citizens are anxious over high prices and the collapse of the rial, which has lost nearly two-thirds of its value in six months and resulted in the rise of commodity prices.
Authorities have acknowledged that worries are legitimate but the biggest concern of many Iranians is that the protests might be hijacked by malicious groups inside and outside the country and turn violent.
In January, several Iranian cities were scenes of protests but they were hijacked by terrorist MKO elements, in which unknown elements opened fire at protesters and killed several people.
Iranian officials have said the voices of protesters need to be heard. However, they have warned of efforts by the enemies, the MKO and the royalists to manipulate the legitimate demands of the people and create mayhem.
