Iran has experienced deadly protests over the past couple of weeks. As a person who believes they are very in the know, so to speak, I was puzzled that I had not heard about this event earlier. Instability in Iran is unfortunately not a new occurrence. However, these protests are coming at a time when people around the globe are fighting for the betterment of their nations. As such, I believe it is critical we understand how the protests began, what is happening, and what can possibly come of it.
Source: AP News
In May of 2018, President Trump announced he would be removing the United States from the Iran Nuclear Deal. The deal, which was created in 2015 under the Obama administration, required that Iran stop developing its nuclear program and the UN, EU, and other major powers would lift the economic sanctions on Iran. The sanctions had a devasting effect on Iran’s economy, with the BBC calculating that it costed “the country more than $160bn in oil revenue from 2012 to 2016 alone.” They also noted that the lifting of said sanction unfroze more than $100bn in assets abroad. When the United States pulled out of the agreement they reinstated sanctions on Iran and any countries that traded with it.
Source: Modern Diplomacy
Due to the sanctions, Iran’s economy has been in a downturn again. As a result, when the Iranian government increased the price of gasoline by 50% overnight, the people in Iran were furious. Similarly to the protests that erupted in Chile, the Iranian people were not solely upset because of the increase in gasoline prices. Rather, that acted as the straw that broke the camel is back. While the Iranian government did introduce a welfare plan for those who are poor afterward, there was nothing that could be done to stop the outrage.
Source: BBC
The regime’s crackdown on the protests was brutal. The New York Times reports that between 180 and 450 people were killed, with many of the deaths occurring when the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps allegedly cornered and shot between 40 to 100 protestors. The main victims have been young men, many of whom are unemployed due to the economy. The New York Times further reported, “at least 2,000 wounded and 7,000 detained, according to international rights organizations, opposition groups and local journalists.” This makes the protests the worst seen in Iran in the past decade.
Source: The Times of Israel
Ultimately, the protests in Iran are troubling due to the extent of the damage done. Hundreds of lives were lost and thousands were injured and imprisoned. These events may be the spark that sets off a widespread revolution in Iran. As such, the world should be paying much closer attention to what is happening. Iran is a critical player in the Middle East and any events that occur there have large waves of impact on the surrounding nations.
Written so well as always. Quality content! Very interesting what’s happening and extremely unfortunate
I agree, I am shocked I have not heard more about this in the media. Especially with how devastating and violent it is.
This was a very interesting read. I hope that Iran is able to solve out its problems and that the US will come back to the table with the Nuclear Deal. Even if the US does come back to discuss with Iran, the Iranian citizens will still take the brunt of the hardships that the country will take which I hope Iran takes steps to fixing.
Lui, I had no idea about what was happening in Iran. It’s devastating to hear what’s happening there. I can’t believe I haven’t heard more about this issue. When thousands of protesters are being killed, how could the media ignore that? Really interesting read and fabulously written!
Lui- I always so impressed with your blog posts! They are always so eloquently written with just the right amount of detail that gives the reader what they actually need to know. I am so shocked about these events in Iran and equally as shocked as to how deadly it is getting.
I had not heard anything about the protests in Iran either, which to me is insane considering the devastation and violence that seems to be dominating the protests. Though you hinted that it was more than just the gas prices that launched the protests, I would be interested in finding out for what other reasons the protesters are protesting.
There seems to be a trend in the US nowadays: the general public is almost always unaware about global issues, especially those revolving around democracy. I have been following the Hong Kong protests for a while now, and it is upsetting to know that everyone I talk to about it is completely uninformed. I think for Hong Kong, this is because of China’s influence on the global stage and their suppression of dissent. For this issue, I think it could be because it involves the US directly. People don’t like seeing the US being a ‘bad actor’ in global issues, and thus less people are informed. Plus, it is easy for people to get caught up with issues specific to the US that they end up not caring about issues abroad. Great blog, I hope more people get to read this.
This is incredible, I’d call this professional quality. Incredible breakdown of the events, I’m also amazed that I was in the dark on this subject.
your blog is so informative and has such great voice. you offer a lot of very interesting well organized details that made it easy for me to understand while still feeling like I was reading a professional article.