An enormous hearth has damaged out at Iran’s Evin jail, the place political prisoners and anti-government activists are stored within the capital Tehran.
On-line movies and native media reported gunshots, as nationwide protests entered a fifth week.
At the least eight individuals have been injured within the hearth, in accordance with the Islamic Republic Information Company (IRNA), which mentioned no fatalities have been recorded.
It’s unclear what triggered the blaze and the occasions unfolding inside the jail’s partitions on Saturday.
Photographs continued to ring out as plumes of smoke engulfed the sky in Tehran and alarms sounded.
Nonetheless, the US-based Centre for Human Rights in Iran mentioned an “armed battle” broke out inside the jail partitions. It added photographs have been first heard in ward seven of the jail. The data has not been independently verified.
The unrest at Evin jail come as anti-government protests continued throughout Iran in a motion sparked by the dying final month of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old who had been arrested by Iran’s morality police for not carrying a hijab.
Protesters reportedly chanted “down with the dictator” on the streets of Ardabil within the northwest of the nation. State media quoted a safety official blaming “legal parts” for Saturday’s unrest.
The official mentioned calm had returned, however one witness mentioned gunfire may nonetheless be heard.
“Roads resulting in Evin jail have been closed to visitors. There are many ambulances right here,” a witness advised Reuters information company. “Nonetheless we will hear gunshots.”
One other witness mentioned households of prisoners had gathered in entrance of the principle jail entrance. “I can see hearth and smoke. Plenty of particular forces. Ambulances are right here too,” they mentioned.
The activist web site 1500tasvir shared video footage it mentioned confirmed particular forces on motorbikes heading for the jail.
At the least 233 protesters have been killed since demonstrations swept Iran on 17 September, estimates from the US-based rights monitor HRANA present. The group mentioned 32 among the many useless have been under the age of 18.
Public anger over Amini’s dying noticed women and girls to take away their necessary headscarves and reduce their hair on the road in a present of solidarity.
Different segments of society, together with oil staff, have additionally joined the motion, which has unfold to a minimum of 19 cities, changing into one of many best challenges to Iran‘s theocracy because the nation’s 2009 Inexperienced Motion.
Riots have additionally damaged out in prisons, with clashes reported between inmates and guards in Lakan jail within the northern province of Gilan just lately.
Iranian authorities have dismissed the unrest as a plot perpetrated by the West, with out offering proof.
The federal government by arresting activists and protest organisers, reprimanding Iranian celebrities for voicing help, even confiscating their passports, and utilizing reside ammunition, tear fuel and sound bombs to disperse crowds, resulting in deaths.
