Iran deploys troops to Kurdish city and declares marital law.

 

File photo of protests in Tehran, Iran. Fox News/AP.

Iran has deployed troops to the Kurdish city of Mahabad and declared martial law. Fox News. Iran has been rocked by a wave of riots and protests and this incident was sparked off after the funeral of two protesters. The funeral led to riots and the protesters taking over most of the city. Iran has also cut internet and power to most of the city. Iranian forces have used gunfire to break up protests and are cracking down hard in the city. 

My Comment:

Iran's crackdown continues. The violence continues and it doesn't seem to be ending anytime soon. This uprising in Mahabad is not surprising but I expect it to be crushed fairly quickly. The Iranians are not messing around and have deployed the troops. 

Of course, I never thought that the protests would amount to much. The Iranian government is very good at dealing with riots and protests. They have had plenty of experience. These protests erupt every few years due to various reasons and are always put down. I fully expect the same thing to happen here.

Why? Because what is happening Mahabad. Iran can put down riots because they are willing to go far enough to put down rioters with their military. Most countries are reluctant to do that but Iran has no scruples and does not care about international opinion one bit. For them killing a bunch of protesters is a solution, not a problem. 

There is an ethnic and religious aspect to the protests in Mahabad. It is a Kurdish majority city and most Kurds are Sunni Muslims while Iran is majority Shiite. This religious aspect is largely ignored but it does go a lot to explain what is going on. Iran probably doesn't just view this as a normal riot, but as an uprising by a hated ethnic and religious group. 

I think that the United States has their hands all over this. We have hated Iran ever since the government there was overthrown by radical Shiite Muslims. The coverage of these riots have been universally positive and hopelessly optimistic, which tells me that our government has a major stake in these riots succeeding. I am guessing that the CIA and other intelligence agencies are helping these riots. It would not be surprising at all, the US government has a long history of trying to encourage civil disorder in other countries. 

That being said, I do have sympathy for the people protesting against the Iranian government. I am not a fan of their religious extremism and their proxy war against Saudi Arabia. And they are obviously a brutal regime that treats people horribly. I wouldn't be upset if Iran were to somehow fall and their government being replaced by a less brutal one. 

But I don't think it will happen anytime soon. Like I said, Iran is very good at taking down protests and riots. The Iranian government is not going to allow these protests to continue and if they do expect to see more deployment of troops and more firing on protesters.