Several days of demonstrations and general strike by thousands of residents in Jajarm
-In clashes with Guards Corps and Intelligence Ministry, 200 arrested, many wounded

Nearly the entire 15,000 population of Jajarm (northeastern Khorassan province) staged a city-wide protest beginning Saturday, February 15, against the clerical regime's suppressive policies, the abysmal economic conditions and the Councils' election sham, reports from Iran say. Residents, consisting of women, men and children, jammed the city's streets and chanted slogans against the regime's leaders. They were also protesting against new geographical divisions by the Interior Ministry which had merged the cities of Jajarm and Garmeh. In this connection, many candidates for the Councils' elections in both cities quit the race.

To put down the popular uprising, the clerical regime mobilized the local forces and dispatched hundreds of special anti-riot forces of the Guards Corps from the city of Bojnourd to Jajarm. Residents, however, clashed with them, attacked and damaged, many government building and banks and centers of the State Security Force.

In the course of the attack by the Guards Corps and Intelligence Ministry agents, equipped with riot gear, many protesters were wounded or arrested.

In protest to the regime's suppressive measures, more than 2,000 mine workers in this area went on strike; all mines have been shut down.

All schools and most of the stores have shut down since the start of the week. On Tuesday, bakeries stopped work. To pressure the residents to end their protests and strikes, the regime shut down the city's electricity.

In the past two days, security forces raided the people's homes, arrested many youth and took them to unknown locations. Around 200 have been arrested in these events in Jajarm. The city is reported to be extremely tense as anti-riot forces are stationed throughout the city and an undeclared martial law is in force.

The Iranian Resistance calls on international human rights organizations to condemn the clerical regime's repressive policies and demands that they undertake urgent action to save the lives of those arrested.

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
February 18, 1999

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