By Jaime León
Tehran, Jan 13 (EFE).– After days of nationwide protests that posed the most serious challenge to Iran’s leadership in years, Tehran cautiously returned to normal on Tuesday, even as global criticism mounted over the violent suppression of demonstrators.
Although a tacit curfew remains in effect, with businesses beginning to close as evening approaches, the heavy presence of security forces that flooded the streets from Thursday onward began to ease on Monday afternoon.
On Valiasr Street, one of the city’s main arteries, traffic had returned to what is normal for a Tuesday, with people walking freely and shops and banks open.
Banks had been among the main targets of the protests and had remained closed since Saturday.
On Tuesday, they reopened. Although some branches were undergoing repairs due to damage sustained during the unrest, they were operating largely normally, albeit with fewer customers.
In Tajrish Square, home to Tehran’s second-largest bazaar, a small detachment of police and riot officers stood next to a sign bearing the photo of a soldier killed alongside a child, labeled “the martyr Majid Rahimi.”
Despite a noticeable drop in foot traffic, shops in the area were open.
Protests peak as information blackout continues
According to Iranian media, authorities have shut down businesses that announced on Thursday they would close in solidarity with the protests, including a café owned by former international footballer Voria Ghafuri.
The protests, which began on Dec. 28, peaked on Thursday with demonstrations erupting across much of the country.
According to official sources, the unrest included vandalism of public institutions, the ransacking of banks, and the burning of 53 mosques nationwide.
These official sources have been virtually the only source of information available to Iranians for the past five days, as the government-controlled intranet has remained operational amid an internet blackout imposed by authorities to curb the protests.
The shutdown has been the longest to date. Even during last year’s war with Israel, the disruption to internet access was shorter.
Witnesses in Tehran told EFE they had seen “war zones” and “pitched battles” in several parts of the city, where fierce clashes between protesters and police took place, particularly on Thursday and Friday nights.
Despite the violence, authorities have sought to project an image of normalcy. Areas where EFE observed destroyed vehicles appeared clean and free of visible damage.
Nocturnal sloganeering persists
Each evening at 8 p.m., residents have continued to chant slogans against the regime, a ritual that Reza Pahlavi, son of the last shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, also urged people to repeat at 6 p.m., though with limited response on the capital’s streets.
The most violent nights, Thursday and Friday, when all businesses closed and activity largely halted by 4 p.m., began to subside on Saturday.
The military presence has steadily decreased since Sunday, after large numbers of police and soldiers were deployed.
On Monday, thousands of government supporters rallied in support of the authorities, a show of force that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei hailed as “a warning to American politicians.”
“These large gatherings, overflowing with determination, have thwarted the plot of foreign enemies, which was to be carried out by domestic mercenaries,” Khamenei said in a message to the nation.
Conflicting accounts of casualties
So far, casualty figures have come exclusively from sources outside Iran.
The NGO Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) said on Monday that nearly 650 protesters were killed during the demonstrations, one of several unofficial estimates, and warned that some of the nearly 10,000 detainees could face execution.
The organization said it had verified, either directly or through at least two independent sources, the deaths of 648 people in 14 of Iran’s 31 provinces, including nine minors whose ages are still being confirmed.
In Tehran, official reports of fatalities have referred only to members of the security forces.
Pahlavi seeks end to regime
Reza Pahlavi, who lives in the United States, urged Western leaders on Tuesday to support what he described as the Iranian people’s desire to end the Islamist regime, calling on them to “stand on the right side of history.”
In an interview with the French daily Le Figaro, Pahlavi said Iranians protesting against economic hardship and political repression were “defenseless” but determined, and warned against any new agreements with what he called “a regime on the verge of collapse.”
Pahlavi said the conditions for regime change were in place “for the first time in 47 years,” arguing that Western efforts to preserve the status quo would be a miscalculation.
He said his role would be to help unite opposition forces and guide a democratic transition through a constituent assembly.
Collapse imminent, says German chancellor
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Tuesday that Iran’s regime could fall within “days or weeks,” arguing that “a regime that can only maintain itself through violence is, in fact, finished.”
Speaking to journalists during a visit to India, Merz again condemned the repression of protests in Iran as “disproportionate” and “brutal,” praising the courage of the demonstrators.
Iran has since summoned the ambassadors of Germany, France and the United Kingdom over their support for the protests.
UN warns against exploiting Iran protests
The United Nations on Tuesday warned that the protests in Iran “should not be instrumentalized,” amid U.S. threats of possible military intervention.
Jeremy Laurence, spokesman for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the office was concerned that the unrest could be exploited, stressing that “this should never happen when it comes to human rights.”
He added that dialogue was the best path forward and that Iranians with legitimate grievances must be able to express them peacefully.
Laurence also said the excessive use of force against protesters, reported by NGOs to have caused hundreds of deaths and thousands of arrests, constitutes a violation of international law.
Global condemnations, solidarity
Spain on Tuesday summoned Iran’s ambassador to Madrid to express its “strong rejection and condemnation” of the repression of protests, urging Tehran to respect peaceful assembly, restore internet access, end arbitrary detentions and guarantee women’s rights, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said.
Portugal also summoned Iran’s ambassador in Lisbon to convey its “vehement” condemnation of the violent repression and to urge respect for citizens’ rights, saying it is prepared to strengthen sanctions against Tehran.
In its message, Finland told Iran’s ambassador to stop the harsh crackdown on protests, with Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen accusing Tehran of blocking the internet to “kill and oppress in silence” and voicing support for the Iranian people.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese voiced support for protests in Iran and condemned what he called an “oppressive regime,” saying Iranians are fighting for human rights, dignity, and freedom while authorities respond with repression.
He recalled that Australia expelled Iran’s ambassador last year and is moving to designate the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization. EFE
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