Tehran reminds US of its own killings by race, provides proof

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
24 Sep 2022 09:26
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Iran, through its Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, calls US human rights records despicable and slams claims on human rights abuses in the country as baseless.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani

The Iranian Foreign Ministry responded to the US Secretary of State's claims on human rights issues in Iran and slammed them as baseless, reminding the US of its own record of killings and human rights abuses committed racially, with Black people making the majority of those killed.

Following how the West, spearheaded by the US, took advantage of the death of Mahsa Amini, claiming that it was the result of a brutal arrest by the Iranian police, and the fact that the western and Arab-monarchy-backed media outlets quickly jumped to the trend of covering anti-Iran protests, picturing them as large rallies, when in fact, they included far fewer numbers than depicted, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani reminded the US of its “despicable” human rights record across the world.

The death of the Iranian girl, #MahsaAmini, showed how far the #Western media can go in reporting fake news all for the sake of publishing anti-#Iran propaganda. pic.twitter.com/fXayys8LTE
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) September 23, 2022

"With a despicable human rights record both at home & abroad, how does the US have the audacity to give itself higher moral ground to lecture the world?" Kanaani tweeted on Friday.

With a despicable human rights record both at home & abroad, how does the US have the audacity to give itself higher moral ground to lecture the world?@SecBlinken needs to remember that he's FM of a state whose police, just in 9 months, has fatally shot 730, many of them black. pic.twitter.com/J8UBYQAOpH
— Nasser Kanaani (@IRIMFA_SPOX) September 23, 2022

The Spokesperson also recalled the 730 killings of US citizens, mostly black, which reflects a US trend of killing by race.

Tehran reminds US of its own killings by race

"@SecBlinken needs to remember that he's FM of a state whose police, just in 9 months, has fatally shot 730, many of them black," the Iranian top diplomat added.

Kanaani's remarks came in reaction to Blinken who had claimed, "We took action today to advance Internet freedom and the free flow of information for the Iranian people, issuing a General License to provide them greater access to digital communications to counter the Iranian government’s censorship."

In response to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's announcement, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said Friday that he was activating Starlink, his company's constellation of internet satellites, in Iran as the Islamic Republic undergoes mass protests.

Musk was more than ready to oblige saying, "Activating Starlink" on Twitter.

Activating Starlink …
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 23, 2022

Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi stated today that some social networking sites took an active role in directing the riots and igniting the fires, adding that many elements of the riots were the result of training received using these sites.

Wahidi then went on to announce that the ministry decided to put temporary restrictions on social networking sites to "maintain security and the safety of the people."

The US Department of the Treasury issued a license expanding the provision of internet services to Iran amid the protests taking place in the country, US Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said on Friday.

The US decision comes in light of widespread demonstrations taking place in Iran in the aftermath of a young woman's death that the West rushed to capitalize on, claiming that the Iranian police murdered her.

A few days ago, the Iranian police published CCTV footage documenting the last moments of Mahsa Amini at the police station. The Tehran police said the footage proved that the 22-year-old was not subjected to any violence or physical abuse.

The expanded license granted by Washington authorities tech companies to offer Iranians more secure, external internet service options, such as Starlink, eccentric billionaire Elon Musk's satellite service.

Meanwhile, Washington and the West have said that Tehran cut off internet access for civilians across the country. However, Iranian Minister of Information and Communications Technology Issa Zarepour denied on Friday that internet access had been down around the country since the day before, Tasnim news agency reported.

The Iranian agency said it contacted the communications ministry after some Telegram channels, without giving sources, published messages about the Internet being cut off throughout the whole country since last evening, and received the answer that these messages did not correspond to reality.

This is not the first time that Musk responds to the Twitter bat signal of his, however. SpaceX's Starlink satellites got deployed in late February across Ukraine after a request from the Ukrainian Vice PM, with Musk promising more were yet to come.