The head of Iran’s judiciary said Tehran will offer no leniency to “rioters” who have taken to the streets for more than a week of protests driven by economic hardship, high inflation and rising costs for essentials.
The demonstrations throughout Iran began over economic grievances but have evolved into broader calls for change in the country.
Iranian Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei said the “enemies” of the Islamic republic are using economic hardship to sow division and discord.
“I instruct the attorney general and prosecutors across the country to act in accordance with the law and with resolve against the rioters and those who support them … and to show no leniency or indulgence,” Chief Justice Mohseni-Ejei said, according to the state-owned Mizan news agency.
Iranian officials have accused the U.S. and Israel of orchestrating the demonstrations, which began Dec. 28 when shopkeepers staged a strike over high prices, economic hardship and a collapsing currency.
“The enemy wants to undermine our unity and cohesion and preoccupy us with secondary, marginal, and third-tier issues. We must not inadvertently play into the enemy’s hands,” Chief Justice Mohseni-Ejei said. “What the enemy failed to achieve during the 12-day imposed war, it now seeks to accomplish through fabricated narratives and sedition.”
He was referring to Iran’s 12-day war with Israel in June, during which the U.S. and Israel decimated the country’s uranium-enrichment program.
The chief justice said the public was correct to demand an end to corruption, especially against those who have sought to exploit the conditions that have brought about high prices and inflation. They should be “confronted decisively and diligently through legal means,” he said.
“But we must not play into the enemy’s hands. Sometimes the enemy raises an issue simply to entangle our minds,” Chief Justice Mohseni-Ejei said. “We must focus solely on solving the people’s problems, not on engaging with distractions behind which the enemy stands.”
