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Some 200,000 people demonstrated on Saturday against Iran’s government on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference where world leaders gather, answering a call from Iran ’s exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi for cranked up international pressure on Tehran.
Protesters carried placards, waved flags, banged drums and chanted for regime change as they participated in the protest Pahlavi described as a “global call to action” to support Iranians from abroad amid their continued struggle in the ongoing anti-government protests.
“Change, change, regime change” the huge crowd chanted, waving green-white-and-red flags with lion and sun emblems, the flag Iran used prior to the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the Pahlavi dynasty.
Pahlavi warned as he addressed the Munich conference on Saturday of more deaths in Iran if “democracies stand by and watch” following Iran’s deadly crackdown on protesters last month.
“We gather at an hour of profound peril to ask: Will the world stand with the people of Iran?” he asked.
He added that the survival of Iran’s government “sends a clear signal to every bully: kill enough people and you stay in power.”
Pahlavi also praised the US for its supportive stance towards the protesters and urged President Donald Trump to make good on his promise to deliver help to them during their time of need.
He also thanked Trump for his decisive action after the US president announced on Friday that he had ordered the deployment of a second aircraft carrier group to the region, as his administration continues to weigh military action in Iran.
At the Munich rally, demonstrators sported “Make Iran Great Again” red caps, mimicking the MAGA caps worn by Trump and his supporters.
Many waved placards showing Pahlavi, some that called him a king. The son of Iran’s deposed shah has been in exile for nearly 50 years but is trying to position himself as a player in the country’s future.
“We have huge hopes and (are) looking forward that the regime is going to change hopefully,” said Daniyal Mohtashamian, a demonstrator who travelled from Zurich, in Switzerland, to speak for protesters inside Iran who faced repression.
“There is an internet blackout and their voices are not going outside of Iran,” he said.
Protests in Iran started in late December over the declining economic conditions and the collapse of the country’s currency, the rial. Demonstrations were met with brutal crackdown, triggering nationwide demonstrations against the government.
Protests have by eyewitness accounts been extremely deadly, with many protesters saying dozens were being killed, assaulted or arrested daily.
It’s unclear how many precisely have died in government crackdown on protests so far. Some activist groups estimate the death toll to be nearing the 30,000 mark, while more conservative estimate have them hovering around the 7,000 to 10,000 mark.
The government, who have not released official figures, denounced the estimates being floated by activist groups, saying the numbers are being “politicised” to stir chaos, but did acknowledge that several thousand people were killed in clashes with security forces.
Additional sources • AP