Antonela Roccuzzo supported the women protesting in Iran

Antonela Roccuzzo shared this Saturday a message of support for the women who are leading the protests in Iran, which began after the death of a young woman after being arrested for incorrect use of the Islamic veil.

Lionel Messi’s wife spread on her Instagram account, from a story, a publication with a message that supports the demonstrations that have shaken the country since mid-September.

“If you cannot imagine living in a world without a choice, do not remain silent,” indicates the original text, labeled Mahsa Amini, the young woman who died in the custody of the morality police. And she uses the motto that is replicated in support demonstrations around the world: “Be our voice.”

The publication was made by María Taktouk, daughter of Daniella Semaan, the wife of footballer Cesc Fábregas, former Barcelona star and close friend of Messi.

In addition, it includes old photos of Iranian women, with a very different lifestyle. It’s about the time before the Islamic Revolution, when Iran was a liberal country and they were allowed to wear whatever they wanted.

The Islamic veil, which had been abolished in 1936 as part of a modernization process, became mandatory again in 1979.

Protests were held across Iran last Friday for the 15th consecutive night, despite a bloody crackdown that a rights group says has claimed more than 80 lives. “Woman, life, freedom” and “Death to the dictator,” they chanted in the streets of Saqqez, Amini’s hometown, in the province of Kurdistan.

Riot police massed at major intersections in Tehran on Saturday, amid reports of demonstrations at universities calling for the release of detained students.

Social media channel 1500tasvir shared video footage of large demonstrations in the capital, as well as in the shrine city of Mashhad and Kermanshah in the west.

Meanwhile, rallies supporting the movement are taking place in 159 cities around the world, from Auckland to New York and Seoul to Zurich, according to the group Iranians for Justice and Human Rights.

“Be our voice” was the slogan of a protest in the eastern Australian city of Brisbane, where organizers said thousands of people from the Iranian diaspora were demanding freedoms in their country.

Protests erupted in Iran on September 16, when Amini was declared dead three days after falling into a coma following her arrest. The Oslo-based Iran Human Rights group says at least 83 people have been killed in the crackdown. Amnesty International says it has confirmed 52 fatalities, while the Iranian Fars news agency puts the death toll at “around 60.”

It is the bloodiest unrest in Iran since the ruthless crackdown on protests in November 2019 over a sudden rise in fuel prices, which left at least 304 people dead, according to Amnesty.

Security forces used live ammunition and tear gas on Friday to try to disperse protests in several cities and towns across the country.

The Iranian Intelligence Ministry said that “nine foreign nationals,” including from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland, were detained “at or behind the site of the unrest,” along with 256 members of banned opposition groups. .

Unrest also broke out yesterday in the southeastern Iranian province of Sistan-Baluchistan, bordering Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Iran has blamed outside forces for the nationwide protests. On Wednesday, the Revolutionary Guard launched cross-border missile and drone attacks that killed 14 people in autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan, accusing rebel groups in the region of fueling the unrest.

Amnesty claimed that Iran was intentionally using lethal force to crush women-led protests. He announced that he had obtained a leaked document issued to commanders of the armed forces in all provinces on September 21 in which they were ordered to “confront harshly” the protesters.

Another leaked document showed that the commander of Mazandaran province had ordered forces to “mercily confront, even causing death, any disturbance by rioters and anti-revolutionaries.”

More than 50 countries signed a statement “urging Iran to stop using force against peaceful protesters,” tweeted US special envoy for Iran Robert Malley. The warning comes as Iran continues to intensify its repression, which has led to the detention of numerous journalists, activists and other prominent figures.

(With information from AFP)

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