Shabtabnews In this dark night, I have lost my way – Arise from a corner, oh you the star of guidance.
Iranwire – Iranian oil workers have protested at several production sites in the south of the country demanding higher wages and retirement bonuses, among other things, according to social media posts.
The protests purportedly occurred on December 17 amid a wave of nationwide protests that has convulsed Iran for three months, marking the boldest challenge to the Islamic Republic since the 1979 revolution.
The activist HRANA news agency reported that a group of oil workers protested outside the Pars Oil and Petrochemical Company in Asaluyeh, in Bushehr Province.
Similar rallies were reported on Kharg Island and in the cities of Ahvaz and Mahshahr. The two cities are located in Khuzestan Province.
Wage increases, pension bonuses, the removal of high-income taxes and salary caps, and improved welfare services and health conditions were among the oil workers’ demands.
The Council for Organizing Oil Contract-Workers’ Protests had called for the demonstrations, condemning the bloody state crackdown on the nationwide protests, which it said is targeting “every protesting voice against poverty, lawlessness, hunger and looting.”
“It means to suffocate the voice of the people who shout for women, life, freedom,” it said adding, “We will not tolerate these repressions anymore.”
The Iranian security forces have cracked down hard on the wave of protests sparked by the September death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, in the custody of morality police. At least 469 people have been killed, including 63 children, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights group says.
At least 18,000 people have reportedly been detained for their involvement in the protests, and at least 39 are currently at risk of being executed or sentenced to death, according to Iran Human Rights.
Iran carried out the first execution on December 8, followed by a second one four days later, triggering international condemnation.
