Iranian security forces swept through the country’s Kurdish region with helicopters and armored vehicles, firing live ammunition and raiding homes in search of opponents, a show of force that demonstrates how the government’s response to a two-month-old protest movement is taking a more aggressive turn.
Protesters in Mahabad and surrounding areas filled city streets Saturday, according to authorities. After rumors swirled on social media that authorities were gearing up to attack, balaclava-clad protesters wearing makeshift helmets set bins on fire and barricaded a key artery in Mahabad with cinder blocks and wooden doors, according to footage posted by Tavaana, a U.S.-based Iranian civic organization, and multiple other social-media accounts.
