Middle East

Protests in Iran Spread to Oil and Gas Sector

This image grab from a UGC video made available on Twitter on Oct. 9, 2022, shows Iranian students from the Faculty of Arts at Tehran's Azad University participating in a protest with their palms covered in red paint to symbolize blood. (Photo by UGC/AFP)

Protests in Iran over the death of a 22-year-old woman have spread to workers in the oil and gas sector, online videos appear to show.

Videos posted on social media Monday show demonstrations taking place at Asaluyeh, Iran’s large offshore natural gas field on the Persian Gulf.

Workers can be seen in the videos chanting “shameless” and “death to the dictator.”

In an analysis of the recordings by The Associated Press, the news agency said details of the refineries in the videos correspond to known features and satellite images of the Asaluyeh facility.

The Reuters news agency said Monday other videos on social media appear to show protests taking place at Iran’s Abadan and Kangan oil refineries.

These demonstrations mark the first time the unrest surrounding the death of Mahsa Amini have threatened Iran's oil and gas industry.

SEE ALSO: Gunfire, Blasts in Western Iran Amid Mahsa Amini Protests

Protests began in Iran after Amini, from Iran’s Kurdish region, died September 16 after being taken into the custody of the morality police for allegedly not following the country’s strict dress code.

Videos have been posted online of the protests, despite authorities disrupting the internet to prevent news of the demonstrations from spreading.

The protests, now in their fourth week, have been met with a crackdown by police and security forces.

On Monday, Kurdish rights group Hengaw accused the authorities of using heavy weaponry to try to disperse protests in the northwestern city of Sanandaj. It also reported a heavy presence of armed security forces in the Kurdish cities of Saqez and Divandareh.

The group said at least five Kurdish residents have been killed in protests since Saturday.

Iran Human Rights, an Oslo-based group, says at least 185 people have been killed since the protests began. They say hundreds more have been injured and thousands arrested.

A person rides a motorcycle near a fire during a protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, in Javanrud, Iran, in this screengrab from a social media video released on Oct. 8, 2022, obtained by Reuters on Oct. 9, 2022.

The deaths include 90 people who were killed in the southeastern city of Zahedan in protests against a police officer accused of rape in a separate case.

State media have said 24 members of the security forces have been killed in the protests overall, including in Zahedan.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said the widespread protests following Amini’s death are not the actions of “ordinary Iranians” and accused the United States and Israel of planning the demonstrations.

Iran’s government has said Amini died of a heart attack and was not mistreated. Her family says Amini had no history of heart problems and that her body showed bruises and other signs of beating. They have called for accountability.

Some information in this report came from the Associated Press and Reuters.