They have different causes and aims but mass protests from Iran to Hong Kong accelerate – By Kim Hjelmgaard (USA Today) / Nov 18 2019
Anti-government unrest in Iran following a decision by authorities to dramatically raise gas prices spread to a reported 100 cities and towns Monday as Tehran became the latest nation around the world to see mass protests, sometimes violent, that have broken out in recent months from Lebanon to Hong Kong.
The global protests – in Bolivia, Chile, Spain and elsewhere – are not connected and have different causes and aims. However, they are loosely linked thematically in that they concern inequality, political freedoms, corruption and climate change.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei late Sunday backed his government’s decision to raise gas prices by 50% and called protesters there who have been setting fire to public property over the hike “thugs.” Iran also imposed a near total Internet blackout over the weekend, according to NetBlocks, a group that monitors international Internet access.
By Monday, Iran’s Internet connectivity stood at 7%, NetBlocks said.
The gas-price hike is especially controversial in Iran because it is home to the world’s fourth-largest crude oil reserves and gas has long been inexpensive despite decades of economic woes since its 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Problems for Iran’s economy have been compounded by President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers and reimpose crippling economic sanctions on the Middle East country.
Continue to article: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2019/11/18/mass-protests-global-unrest-iran-to-hong-kong/4226826002/
