Protesters in Erbil, Iraq, hold up images of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian-Kurdish woman who died in police custody in Tehran. AFP
Protesters in Erbil, Iraq, hold up images of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian-Kurdish woman who died in police custody in Tehran. AFP
Protesters in Erbil, Iraq, hold up images of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian-Kurdish woman who died in police custody in Tehran. AFP
Protesters in Erbil, Iraq, hold up images of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian-Kurdish woman who died in police custody in Tehran. AFP

Iran shells Kurdish opposition group in Iraq over Mahsa Amini protests


Sinan Mahmoud
  • English
  • Arabic

Iran fired artillery at armed Kurdish opposition groups based in northern Iraq on Saturday, accusing them of fanning the continuing protests across the country.

For more than a week now, the Iranian regime has been struggling to contain widespread anti-government demonstrations ignited by a young woman's death in police custody.

The death of Mahsa Amini, 22, who was detained by the country's morality police in Tehran, triggered unrest in the capital and Iran's provinces.

Amini’s family is from Iran’s western Kurdish region bordering Iraq.

Iran has blamed armed Iranian Kurdish dissidents of involvement in the unrest, particularly in the north-west where most of the country's roughly 10 million Kurds live.

The country's official IRNA news agency said the attack on Iraq’s northern Kurdistan region, where Iranian and Turkish Kurdish opposition groups have bases, was carried out by the country’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The semi-official Tasnim news agency, regarded as close to Iran's military, said the attack against “Komalah and Democrat terrorist groups came after illegal entry by these groups’ armed teams into the Iranian border cities in recent days”.

It quoted the Revolutionary Guard as saying the operation would continue to ensure border security.

There was no comment on the attack from the Iraqi government in Baghdad or the authorities in the Iraqi Kurdish region.

For years, Iran has launched attacks with heavy weapons and drones on what it calls “terrorist” groups in northern Iraq.

In 2018, Iranian Fateh-110 ballistic missiles hit the offices of two Iranian-Kurdish parties in the Iraqi-Kurdish town of Koya, killing 18 people. The Revolutionary Guard launched another attack in March, destroying the house of a businessman near Erbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government, injuring several people in the area.

Iran claimed the site had been used by Israeli intelligence, a claim firmly rejected by Baghdad and Erbil.

Iranian state media reported on Saturday that 41 people have been killed during the protests. Iranian human rights groups outside the country say at least 50 people have been killed since the demonstrations began on September 16.

The protests have directly challenged the authority of Iran's clerical rulers. A video posted on social media showed a demonstration in the northern city of Babol in which young people try to remove portraits of current supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the organiser of the country's 1979 revolution, from the gate of a university. Bystanders cheer them on and shout "death to the dictator."

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Saturday that the nation must “deal decisively with those who oppose the country's security and tranquility”.

He “stressed the necessity to distinguish between protests and disturbing public order and security”, according to state media reports of the president's phone call to the family of a member of the Basij militia who was killed while taking part in the crackdown on unrest in the north-eastern city of Mashhad.

  • Angry demonstrators across Iran have taken to the streets to denounce the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died while in police custody. AFP
    Angry demonstrators across Iran have taken to the streets to denounce the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died while in police custody. AFP
  • Iraqi and Iranian Kurds demonstrate outside the UN offices in Erbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on September 24. AFP
    Iraqi and Iranian Kurds demonstrate outside the UN offices in Erbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on September 24. AFP
  • Demonstrators hold up images of Amini. AFP
    Demonstrators hold up images of Amini. AFP
  • People protest in Erbil. Reuters
    People protest in Erbil. Reuters
  • A man and a woman hold up a banner with an image of Amini. AFP
    A man and a woman hold up a banner with an image of Amini. AFP

At least three times this week, mobile internet has been disrupted in Iran, the NetBlocks watchdog has reported. Activists say the move is intended to prevent video footage of the violence from reaching the world.

On Saturday, NetBlocks said Microsoft's Skype video-calling app was now restricted, the latest such measure after platforms including Instagram, WhatsApp and LinkedIn were targeted.

In an effort to help sustain internet connection, the US is making exceptions to its sanctions regime on Iran — a move which Tehran said on Saturday was in line with Washington's hostile stance.

The protests are the largest to sweep the country since demonstrations over fuel prices in 2019, when Reuters reported that 1,500 people were killed in a crackdown on protesters — the bloodiest confrontation in Iran's history.

On Friday, state-organised rallies took place in several Iranian cities to counter the anti-government protests, and the army promised to confront "the enemies" behind the unrest.

In neighbouring Iraq, dozens of Iraqi and Iranian Kurds rallied outside the UN compound in Erbil on Saturday, carrying placards with Amini's photograph and chanting "death to the dictator," referring to Mr Khamenei.

Agencies contributed to this report.

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Fixtures

Opening day Premier League fixtures for August 9-11

August 9

Liverpool v Norwich 11pm

August 10

West Ham v Man City 3.30pm

Bournemouth v Sheffield Utd 6pm

Burnley v Southampton 6pm

C Palace v Everton 6pm

Leicester v Wolves 6pm

Watford v Brighton 6pm

Tottenham v Aston Villa 8.30pm

August 11

Newcastle v Arsenal 5pm

Man United v Chelsea 7.30pm

 

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Stamp duty timeline

December 2014: Former UK finance minister George Osbourne reforms stamp duty, replacing the slab system with a blended rate scheme, with the top rate increasing to 12 per cent from 10 per cent:
Up to £125,000 - 0%; £125,000 to £250,000 – 2%; £250,000 to £925,000 – 5%; £925,000 to £1.5m: 10%; Over £1.5m – 12%

April 2016: New 3% surcharge applied to any buy-to-let properties or additional homes purchased.

July 2020: Rishi Sunak unveils SDLT holiday, with no tax to pay on the first £500,000, with buyers saving up to £15,000.

March 2021: Mr Sunak decides the fate of SDLT holiday at his March 3 budget, with expectations he will extend the perk unti June.

April 2021: 2% SDLT surcharge added to property transactions made by overseas buyers.

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SPECS
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Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

Company profile

Name: The Concept

Founders: Yadhushan Mahendran, Maria Sobh and Muhammad Rijal

Based: Abu Dhabi

Founded: 2017

Number of employees: 7

Sector: Aviation and space industry

Funding: $250,000

Future plans: Looking to raise $1 million investment to boost expansion and develop new products

OPENING FIXTURES

Saturday September 12

Crystal Palace v Southampton

Fulham v Arsenal

Liverpool v Leeds United

Tottenham v Everton

West Brom v Leicester

West Ham  v Newcastle

Monday  September 14

Brighton v Chelsea

Sheffield United v Wolves

To be rescheduled

Burnley v Manchester United

Manchester City v Aston Villa

PROFILE OF CURE.FIT

Started: July 2016

Founders: Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori

Based: Bangalore, India

Sector: Health & wellness

Size: 500 employees

Investment: $250 million

Investors: Accel, Oaktree Capital (US); Chiratae Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, Kalaari Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Piramal Group’s Anand Piramal, Pratithi Investment Trust, Ratan Tata (India); and Unilever Ventures (Unilever’s global venture capital arm)

Teaching your child to save

Pre-school (three - five years)

You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.

Early childhood (six - eight years)

Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.

Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)

Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.

Young teens (12 - 14 years)

Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.

Teenage (15 - 18 years)

Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.

Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)

Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.

* JP Morgan Private Bank 

Tearful appearance

Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday. 

Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow. 

She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.

A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.

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Electric scooters: some rules to remember
  • Riders must be 14-years-old or over
  • Wear a protective helmet
  • Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
  • Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
  • Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
  • Do not drive outside designated lanes
THE 12 BREAKAWAY CLUBS

England

Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur

Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus

Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid

Our legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Updated: September 25, 2022, 11:54 AM