At least 185 agents from Iran’s Basij paramilitary forces, which is affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard, have been injured during clashes with protesters just in the capital Tehran.
Hasan Hasanzadeh, the commander of Tehran's Mohammad Rasulullah unit -- the biggest IRGC’s division which has been praised by the authorities for suppressing popular protests in previous years -- said on Wednesday that the skull of one of their forces was broken and "five of the Basijs are now in the ICU."
While he said none of the Basij fighters were targeted by firearms, he claimed that the protesters "were armed".
Iran is engulfed in unrest and chaos following the death of a young woman who died in custody of hijab police. People in numerous cities are holding daily antigovernment protests while workers unions, including teachers as well as students' associations of several universities have announced strikes. The crucial oil sector workers also threatened a strike on Wednesday.
Iran Human Rights (IHR), a monitoring group based in Oslo, Norway, said Monday that at least 76 protesters have been killed by security forces as of Monday, while unofficial social media sources are reporting much higher numbers.
Earlier in the day, Iran’s Judiciary issued a directive to courts to act “decisively”and issue harsh sentences to many of those arrested during the ongoing anti-regime protests.
