On the Foreign Scene
Online videos have shown that weeks of protest in Iran transited to a more violent phase on Sunday as students who defied an ultimatum by the Revolutionary Guards were met with tear gas, beatings and gunfire from riot police and militia.
The confrontations at dozens of universities prompted a threat of a tougher crackdown in the seventh week of demonstrations since 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died after she was arrested by the morality police for attire deemed inappropriate.
Iranians from all walks of life have been protesting since Amini’s death.
What began as outrage over Amini’s death on Sept. 16 has evolved into one of the toughest challenges to clerical rulers since the 1979 revolution, with some protesters calling for the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The top commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards told protesters that Saturday would be their last day of taking to the streets, the harshest warning yet by Iranian authorities.
According to Reuters, unverifiable videos on social media showed confrontations between students and riot police and Basij forces on Sunday at universities all over Iran.
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