Sistan & Baluchestan: No Longer an Invisible Province
#Sistan #Baluchestan #Baluch #سیستان_بلوچستان# بلوچ #Zahedan #زاهدان #Chabahar #چابهار #Iranshahr #ایرانشهر #Khash #خاش #IranRevolution #IranRevolution2022
On November 11th, during the Friday prayers, Abdolhamid Esmaeel-Zehi, a prominent Sunni leader who is regarded as a "spiritual leader for Iran’s Sunni Muslim population", condemned the regime's brutal suppression of protesters and critics, and raised concerns about the consequences of neglecting people’s legitimate complaints and blaming foreign countries for the uprising.
After the prayer, a mass crowd took it to the streets of Zahedan and chanted against the regime leaders & security forces. Protesters directed their chants at the Basiji militia, indicating that they get paid zero to nothing to kill their own people. For the first time during this movement, protesters chanted against Khomeini, the founder of the IRI. Besides Zahedan, the capital city of Sistan and Baluchestan Province, people in other parts of the southeast of Iran such as Chah Bahar, Iranshahr, Khash, Saravan, and Taftan also came out and formed protests.
Tear gas has been used in some cities, such as Iranshahr. In Chah Bahar, protesters blocked the road between Chah Bahar & Iranshahr to slow down the dispatch of more security forces. A notable addition to this protest is the widespread use of flyers & banners by the people to clearly communicate what they are demanding. The flyers showed demands for accountability for the Zahedan massacre; the release of all students in jail; and for Women, Life, Freedom. Some videos showed that protesters are creating a human chain.
Sistan and Baluchestan is the second largest province in Iran, yet one that has been systematically disinvested, exploited, and repressed. A province rich in history, culture, and natural resources has been struggling with a range of economic, educational, and environmental challenges for decades (i.e. read this post by the US Institute of Peace on Sistan and Baluchestan for more information). Systematic repression & alienation are tactics used by the Islamic Republic to either keep ethnic populations invisible or to misrepresent them as separationists threatening national security. The recent uprising sheds light on the unity & resilience of the Baluch people and has brought the historical injustices done to the Baluch people to the forefront of the public’s consciousness.