Retirees join Iran-wide protests

Iranian retirees protested in dozens of cities across Iran against inadequate pensions amid high inflation due to ongoing US sanctions and difficult living conditions.

The retirees, who number around 4.5 million of Iran’s population, say they want an increase in their pension funds to get out of the poverty line.

On Thursday, teachers across Iran protested the government’s and parliament’s reluctance to address their needs. Active and retired teachers are among those attending the rallies, who have been heavily struck by the economic crisis and the regime’s inaction in drafting laws and providing resources to ameliorate their circumstances.

The strike, which lasted three days, created fear among regime officials, who tried to threaten them. In some towns, thousands of teachers joined the rally. The regime’s riot forces failed to disperse the protesters.

Over the past year, the regime has tried all kinds of tactics to control the troubled society. Whether providing temporary and timid solutions to associating protesters with foreign enemies, trying to pit protesters against each other, using security forces, violence, arrests and incarceration, the regime has done everything possible to prevent the escalation of the protests.

But in all cases it has met resistance from protesters and in many cases protests sparked by economic hardship have turned into anti-regime protests calling for the overthrow of the regime.

Along with growing protests, the regime has stepped up its crackdown, including the execution of political prisoner Heidar Ghorbani and dozens of other executions over the past month. At the same time, the regime resorts to mass arrests of activists and demonstrators and increases pressure on political prisoners.