DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran’s nationwide protests that began at the end of December and the crackdown that followed were coming into sharper focus despite authorities cutting off internet access and limiting wider communications, the Associated Press reported.
The AP described the unrest as the bloodiest crackdown on dissent since Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, painting a picture of damaged streets across cities and towns. Fire-damaged mosques and government offices line streets, the AP reported, while banks have been torched and ATMs smashed.
The Associated Press said officials estimated damage at at least $125 million, based on a review of reports by the state-run IRNA news agency from over 20 cities. Activists, meanwhile, said the number of dead demonstrators reported through limited channels continued to rise.
In comments to the AP, Raha Bahreini of Amnesty International said, “The vast majority of protesters were peaceful.” Bahreini added, “The authorities have opened fire unlawfully.” The AP also reported that video footage showed crowds of people—including children and families—chanting and marching around bonfires.
The AP traced the protests to Tehran’s historic Grand Bazaar, where demonstrations began Dec. 28, initially over the collapse of Iran’s currency, the rial. It said the protests then spread across the country.
The AP reported that tensions escalated on Jan. 8, when demonstrations were called for by Iran’s exiled crown prince, Reza Pahlavi. Before authorities cut internet and phone communication, witnesses in Tehran told the AP they saw tens of thousands of demonstrators on the streets, and gunfire echoed through the city as communications failed.
Bahar Saba of Human Rights Watch told the AP that “Many witnesses said they had never seen such a large number of protesters on the streets.” Saba also said, “Iranian authorities have repeatedly shown they have no answers other than bullets and brutal repression to people taking to the streets.”
As the crackdown intensified, the AP reported that Ali Akbar Pourjamshidian, a deputy interior minister speaking on state TV, acknowledged that violence began in earnest on Jan. 8. The AP said Pourjamshidian told viewers, “More than 400 cities were involved.”
The AP also reported warnings on state media on Jan. 9 by Revolutionary Guard Gen. Hossein Yekta. In the broadcast, Yekta used language urging people to keep mosques and bases filled with “Hezbollahi,” as the AP said the Revolutionary Guard positioned loyal forces to counter demonstrations.
The AP reported that for about two weeks Iran offered no overall casualty figures, then on Wednesday the government said 3,117 people were killed, including 2,427 civilians and security forces. The AP reported that Pourjamshidian identified another 690 dead as “terrorists,” but said the figures conflicted with the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which put the death toll on Saturday at 5,137 and estimated 4,834 were demonstrators.
According to the AP, the Human Rights Activists News Agency said 208 were government-affiliated personnel, 54 were children and 41 were civilians not participating in protests. The AP also said death tolls in Iran have long been inflated or deflated for political reasons, while noting that the government’s decision to release a specific number underscored the scale of what it described as unrest.
The AP reported that Pourjamshidian provided a list of vandalism attributed to the protests and crackdown, including 750 banks, 414 government buildings, 600 ATMs and hundreds of vehicles damaged. The AP said state media reported dozens to hundreds of people detained daily in connection with arrests.
With uncertainty about what may follow, the AP reported that Iranian tradition holds memorial services 40 days after deaths, which could lead to renewed demonstrations around Feb. 17. Online videos from Behesht-e Zahra, the cemetery on the outskirts of Tehran, showed mourners chanting: “Death to Khamenei!” The AP also said it analyzed satellite photos from Planet Labs showing large numbers of cars daily at Behesht-e Zahra’s southern reaches.
Tehran journalist Elaheh Mohammadi, writing for a pro-reform newspaper, told the AP her reporting on Behesht-e Zahra stories was affected by closures and restrictions. The AP reported Mohammadi wrote online, “We send out a message to let people know we’re still alive,” and, “The city smells of death.” The AP also said Mohammadi wrote, “Hard days have passed and everyone is stunned; a whole country is in mourning, a whole country is holding back tears, a whole country has a lump in its throat.”