Iran protests .. Authorities waving iron fist to face "saboteurs"

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian authorities have called for a tougher response to protests that erupted in several regions following a rise in gasoline prices, which the government said was part of measures to rationalize support and achieve social justice.

The protests began on Friday evening immediately after the imposition of a 50% increase in gasoline prices, and included demonstrations and the closure of streets by cars in the capital and several other provinces.

Officially, at least one person was shot dead, and security forces intervened in several locations in the capital Tehran and other cities to disperse demonstrators or to prevent attacks on public and private facilities, while the German Press Agency reported a complete interruption of Internet access in most parts of the country.

Iranian Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli said on Saturday that anyone targeting public and private property would be strictly dealt with and that the authorities would take the necessary measures against them.

Fadhli spoke of attacking official buildings, hospitals and banks in several governorates, stressing that any protests must be within the law, pointing out that the situation in its current form is not in favor of any party.

Local media reported that security forces arrested a number of leaders of the protests in the city of Mashhad, and 60 others in the city of Sari.

Protests in Kermanshah saw clashes with security forces and vandalism of public property, she said, adding that protesters in Kerman city set fire to a police headquarters, while others burned gas stations, banks and other facilities in Shiraz.

The governor of Sirjan city said one person was killed during the protests, while unofficial Iranian websites reported that three people were killed in the southern city of Khorramshahr.

Friday and Saturday protests included Tehran, Ahvaz, Hermeshhr, Birjand, Mashhad, Sirjan, Bandar Abbas, Isfahan, Shiraz and the provinces of West and East Azerbaijan. Two border crossings with Iraq have also been closed. Earlier last year, Iran witnessed protests over the cost.

Government plan
Iran has begun legalizing gasoline distribution and raised its prices by at least 50% from Friday, saying the move was aimed at raising funds to help needy people and tackle fuel smuggling.

Under the plan approved by Iran's Supreme Economic Coordination Council on Saturday, a fuel card holder will have to pay 15,000 riyals ($ 0.13) a liter for the first 60 liters he buys each month, with each additional liter counting about 30,000 riyals.

The subsidized price per liter was 10,000 riyals. Fuel cards were first introduced in 2007, in an effort to reform the government's fuel subsidy system and end widespread smuggling.

Stability or retreat?
In the face of the turmoil caused by the increase, the head of Iran's parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee announced that a number of deputies would submit a proposal to repeal and stop the decision.

But the Supreme Council for Economic Coordination, made up of the heads of the three Iranian authorities, stressed during its meeting on Saturday the cooperation and coordination of all government institutions and the judiciary to implement the decision to raise gasoline prices.

He also stressed that the decision will lead to social justice and combating fuel smuggling and treatment of gasoline consumption, according to the Iranian presidency website.

According to the Iranian government, more than 60 million Iranian citizens from disadvantaged social strata will receive subsidies and financial supplies from the proceeds of the government's decision.

"Opportunists"
Meanwhile, Hosam Eddin Ashna, an adviser to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, said opportunists inside and outside the country made another strategic mistake because Iran is not Iraq or Lebanon, referring to protests against the current political class in both countries.

Ashna said in a tweet on Twitter that the Iranians will not allow the media "puppet" - as he described - to determine the fate of Iran.

In the same vein, Iranian officials accused outsiders - unnamed - of seeking to disturb public order.

Commenting on developments, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reprinted a tweet he had posted a year and a half ago on Twitter, reiterating his country's support for the demands of the Iranian people.