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‘Death to the dictator’: Iran protests intensify after petrol price hike

Several protests erutped across Iranian cities on Saturday, with many protesters blocking main roads with their cars and burning tires while chanting “Death to the dictator,” a day after the government announced a surprise decision to ration and hike the price of petrol.
One civilian was killed and other people injured in Iran's Sirjan, the semi-official news agency ISNA said Saturday. Accodring to Al Arabiya sources, another protester was also killed, named Maitham Abdel Wahab Moneiat.
“Unfortunately someone was killed,” Sirjan's acting governor Mohammad Mahmoudabadi said in the report, adding that the cause of the death was still unclear.
Other people were injured during the demonstrations, he said.
Mahmoudabadi emphasized that "security forces did not have permission to shoot and were only allowed to fire warning shots... which they did."
He said it was a "calm gathering" that was exploited by some who "destroyed public property, damaged fuel stations and also wanted to access the oil company's main fuel depots and set fire to them."
In the city of Bushehr, security forces used water cannons and live ammunition to disperse protesters as they chanted "dishonorable" while running away.
A number of protesters in Tehran blocked a main highway (the Hemmat Expressway) by turning off their car engines while chanting “Death to the dictator,” in a sign of rising anger against Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Other protesters blocked another main road in the Iranian city of Isfahan with their cars as well.
https://twitter.com/AlArabiya_Eng/status/1195620828232241152
Shiraz and Sultanabad, the capital of Iran's southern Fars province, also witnessed road closures, with some protesters burning tires. In Shiraz, Iranian protesters chanted “No Gaza. No Lebanon. I give my life for Iran,” in reference to the Iranian regime's support for Hamas and Hezbollah.
Videos circulated on social media showing Iranian protesters setting fire to the Central Bank of Iran in the city of Behbahan.
Despite the Iranian government’s blocking of the social media network Twitter, the hashtag #IranProtests is slowly making it to the top trends, with more than five tweets being sent out every one second. Other hashtags in Farsi and Arabic have emerged as well.
State news agency IRNA also reported the sporadic protests that erupted in cities across Iran on Saturday.
https://twitter.com/AlArabiya_Eng/status/1195627337733300229
The demonstrations were “severe” at Sirjan in central Iran as “people attacked a fuel storage warehouse in the city and tried to set fire to it,” the news agency reported.
But police intervened to prevent them.
IRNA said “scattered” protests also broke out in other cities including Mashhad, Birjand, Ahvaz, Gachsaran, Abadan, Khoramshahr, Mahshahr, Shiraz and Bandar Abbas.
They were mostly limited to blocking traffic and were over by midnight, it added.
Iran imposed petrol rationing and raised pump prices by at least 50 percent on Friday, saying the move was aimed at helping citizens in need with cash handouts.
The measure was expected to bring in 300 trillion rials ($2.55 billion) per annum, the head of the country’s Planning and Budget Organisation, Mohammad Bagher Nobakht, said on state television.
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BENEFIT Sponsors BuildHer...
- April 23, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”
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