There are two revolutions going on against the ayatollah regime: one internal, in which more and more sections of society are increasingly involved, and the other external, requiring measures similar to those used against the Kremlin for invading Ukraine. Iranian dissidents abroad have asked Western governments for support similar to those they are giving to Ukraine after protests sparked by the death of Masha Amini, who was arrested on September 16 for not wearing a veil properly, claimed lives at least 215 people, including 27 minors. The change.org campaign, which has already garnered more than 300,000 signatures, calls for the expulsion of Iranian diplomats when joining a general strike in Iran called by students and teachers, companies in the chemical sector or the oil industry. This Saturday, a gathering is being convened in Berlin to mobilize the international community in support of those suffering under the regime’s oppression.

“Zan, Zendegi, Azadi (woman, life, freedom)” is the motto of this impending revolution, in which a special role belongs to the generation born after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini came to power in 1979. The protests are a consequence of these four more decades of repression. Masha Amini, who was 22 years old, has become a symbol of the youth who do not want to continue to live as a recluse.

Alpinist Elnaz Rekabi, who came under pressure after he dared to perform without a veil in Seoul, also shocked the international community. In a bizarre post on her social media, she points out that she didn’t wear the veil “at the wrong time and unintentionally.” The truth is that her brother has been arrested, and she is on her way to Tehran, and she, too, is in danger of being arrested. The athlete did not apply for asylum because her husband and most of her family were still in Iran.

‘I blame’ 77 Iranian activists

In an open letter published in Guardianentitled I blameReferring to Émile Zola’s condemnation of the Dreyfus affair, 77 Iranian figures in exile, including several human rights activists, point out that “Iranian youth want everything we all want: to be able to laugh and live, to love and dance, to study and work. , to have an opinion and be able to express it, to have a choice and be able to make decisions, to be free.”

Notable signatories include Elika Ashuri, daughter of former hostage Anoushe Ashuri, historian and activist Ladan Borumand, and US-based journalist Ramin Khaju.

“These young Iranians are brave and courageous and unwilling to succumb to the brutality of the regime any longer. They fight for their lives and fight for their lives. Meanwhile, the Iranian regime is opposing its own population by imprisoning, torturing and killing,” the letter says.

Repressions against minors and patients

According to Iran’s human rights record, 215 people have already died in this long month of violence against the population. Among them are 27 minors, including 16-year-old Asra Panahi, who lost her life last week for refusing to sing an anthem in support of the regime. Security forces entered a school in Ardabil on 13 October and asked a group of youths to chant slogans in support of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Some objected and were beaten. Asra Panahi died as a result of her injuries.

While the Ukrainians are fighting an external invader, the Iranians are fighting an internal enemy.”

open letter from 77 activists

This brutal repression makes these activists remember that “while Ukrainians are fighting an external invader, Iranians are fighting an internal enemy: the regime. free world showed that it is capable of supporting the struggle for freedom in Ukraine, the sanctions were determined in a few days, clear measures were taken.” They call on you to act and support the Iranian people. “Democratic leaders are responsible for the actions and holding Iran accountable for the multiple human rights violations of its own population and dual citizenship, single parents and foreign hostages.”

It is from Ukraine that so far they are demanding the toughest measures against Iran, because the Kiev government accuses the regime of supplying the Kremlin with Shahed-136 drones that cause such great damage to its infrastructure. Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba urged the president to sever relations with Tehran and called on the “twenty-seven” to impose sanctions for supporting Moscow, which the Iranian regime denies.

At the same time, human rights activists such as Kaveh Sharuz launched a change.org campaign targeting the G7 countries (US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Italy and Japan) to expel Iranian ambassadors and demand the release of all political prisoners.

In the lawsuit, they express their concern over what happened over the weekend at Evin Prison, where the regime only acknowledges the death of four people, but because it is overcrowded, there are fears that there are many more, and it was a provoked act of killing many dissidents.

The ayatollah regime has stepped up its crackdown on activists to the point where it doesn’t even respect those who have already served their sentences. One of Iran’s most charismatic dissidents, Arash Sadeghi, has been arrested in the past few hours after contracting bone cancer in prison. Sadeghi has never stopped condemning the imprisonment of political prisoners and prisoners of conscience.

The problem of the general strike

What could be crucial for the regime is how they join the general strike, which was supported two weeks ago by students and then teachers in vital sectors of the economy such as the oil companies or the chemical sector. According to Iranian dissident sources, it would be extremely important for truckers to join. The goal is for the protest to continue over time despite the regime trying to raise wages to avoid it, and the country comes to a standstill.

Millions of Iranians demonstrated in 2009 after a disputed presidential election between Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and reformist Mir Hussein Mousavi. The riots took place in major cities, and it was the middle class that took to the streets denouncing fraud in favor of Ahmadinejad.

Economic difficulties sparked nationwide protests in 2017 and 2019. Then people with the lowest incomes mobilized. Now, for the first time, young and old are participating in demonstrations from all walks of life, both in cities and towns.

According to activist Rima Shirmohammadi, “This is the beginning of the end of the regime. It’s not for romance. Masha Amini’s movement in the world was exceptional. It will be the generation of those born after the revolution that will put an end to the regime. They are brave inside and outside the country.