{"id":229769,"date":"2020-11-17T10:29:07","date_gmt":"2020-11-17T10:29:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=229769"},"modified":"2023-01-26T20:39:58","modified_gmt":"2023-01-26T19:39:58","slug":"continued-protests-in-iran-are-inevitable-so-international-community-faces-a-choice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-protests\/continued-protests-in-iran-are-inevitable-so-international-community-faces-a-choice\/","title":{"rendered":"Continued Protests in Iran Are Inevitable, So International Community Faces a Choice"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"iranprotests\" class=\"size-full wp-image-229771 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/iranprotests.jpg\" alt=\"iranprotests\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/iranprotests.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/iranprotests-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/iranprotests-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/iranprotests-696x392.jpg 696w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In November 2019, Iran was rocked by a<\/span><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/iran-protests-2019-update\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0popular\u00a0<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/iran-protests-2019-update\/\">uprising<\/a> that spanned at least 191 cities and reiterated previous, powerful demands for regime change. On the anniversary of that uprising,\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">the Iranian Resistance\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">held a<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/iran-protests\/iran-photo-story-mek-members-in-albania-commemorate-martyrs-of-november-2019-uprising\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\u00a0virtual conference<\/a> for the purpose of highlighting its impact, commemorating those who died in the unrest, and discussing the ways in which the international community might best respond to the still-unfolding situation.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">On the Anniversary of the November Uprising<br \/> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Iran?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#Iran<\/a> Youth for Regime Change with Resistance Units <br \/>Time to Prosecute Regime Leaders for Crimes Against Humanity <br \/>Online conference <br \/>November 10, 2020 16:00 CET<br \/> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/WeStand4FreeIran?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#WeStand4FreeIran<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/IranProtests?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#IranProtests<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/BnIoXv41og\">https:\/\/t.co\/BnIoXv41og<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/iran_policy\/status\/1326163053176565761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 10, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Last year\u2019s uprising was essentially the peak of a movement that lasted more than two\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">years and<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0is still ongoing. In December 2017, an economic protest in the city of Mashhad sparked similar demonstrations in other cities, and by January 2018, the nationwide protest movement<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0was aimed to\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">ouster the regime<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. Chants of \u201cdeath to the dictator\u201d and \u201cdeath to Rouhani\u201d condemned both the \u201chardline\u201d and \u201creformist\u201d factions of\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">the regime<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and left little question about the population\u2019s\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">desire<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">for democracy and freedom.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The regime\u2019s<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">acknowledged<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0that the protests had been largely organized and directed by the leading democratic opposition group, the People\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/english.mojahedin.org\/about-iranian-opposition-pmoi-mek\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mojahedin Organization of Iran<\/a><\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><a href=\"https:\/\/english.mojahedin.org\/about-iranian-opposition-pmoi-mek\">\u00a0(PMOI\/MEK)<\/a>. The MEK, for four decades has led the struggle for regime change and freedom.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Widespread support for\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">regime change<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0was reaffirmed even after the January 2018 uprising was\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">largely forced back underground following dozens of killings and thousands of arrests. In the wake of that repression, <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/maryam-rajavi\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Mrs.\u00a0<\/a><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/maryam-rajavi\/\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Maryam\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Rajavi<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">, the opposition president,\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">urged the\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Iranians<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0to push back by turning the entire calendar year into a \u201cyear full of uprisings.\u201d Scattered protests and labor\u00a0strikes\u00a0soon indicated that the public was heeding this call, especially when those demonstrations proved to feature the same slogans as had defined the nationwide uprising.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The year of uprisings helped to keep those slogans in circulation well into 2019. And this in turn set the stage for the November uprising, which took place on a much larger scale than its predecessor. As well as encompassing\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">at least<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a050 more localities than the 2018 uprising, last November\u2019s unrest featured extraordinary demographic diversity, with many participants coming from poor rural communities that had long been\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">portrayed by mullahs<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0to be strongholds of support for the theocratic system.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"lyte-wrapper\" title=\"Recalling Iran&rsquo;s nationwide November 2019 protests after gas price hike\" style=\"width:853px;max-width:100%;margin:5px;\"><div class=\"lyMe\" id=\"WYL_zTsaqJ0ZVG8\" itemprop=\"video\" itemscope itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/VideoObject\"><div><meta itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-youtube-lyte\/lyteCache.php?origThumbUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fi.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FzTsaqJ0ZVG8%2Fhqdefault.jpg\" \/><meta itemprop=\"embedURL\" content=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/zTsaqJ0ZVG8\" \/><meta itemprop=\"duration\" content=\"PT15M32S\" \/><meta itemprop=\"uploadDate\" content=\"2020-11-09T17:00:14Z\" \/><\/div><div id=\"lyte_zTsaqJ0ZVG8\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-youtube-lyte\/lyteCache.php?origThumbUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fi.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FzTsaqJ0ZVG8%2Fhqdefault.jpg\" class=\"pL\"><div class=\"tC\"><div class=\"tT\" itemprop=\"name\">Recalling Iran\u2019s nationwide November 2019 protests after gas price hike<\/div><\/div><div class=\"play\"><\/div><div class=\"ctrl\"><div class=\"Lctrl\"><\/div><div class=\"Rctrl\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><noscript><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/zTsaqJ0ZVG8\" rel=\"nofollow\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-youtube-lyte\/lyteCache.php?origThumbUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fi.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FzTsaqJ0ZVG8%2F0.jpg\" alt=\"Recalling Iran&rsquo;s nationwide November 2019 protests after gas price hike\" width=\"853\" height=\"460\" \/><br \/>Watch this video on YouTube<\/a><\/noscript><meta itemprop=\"description\" content=\"Know more about the Resistance Units\u2019 activities against the regime\u2019s crackdown measures: https:\/\/english.mojahedin.org\/t\/iranian-resistance-units On Friday, November 15, 2019, the Iranian regime declared a sudden hike in the price of gasoline. On the same night, the Iranian people, frustrated from economic constraints, poured into the streets in different cities to voice their outrage at the government\u2019s policies. The popular uprising quickly spread to 160 cities across the country Demands for decrease in gasoline prices turned into slogans calling for regime change. The regime\u2019s forces responded to the peaceful demonstrations by attacking the people and breaking their vehicle windows in the streets. The people in turn attacked banks, gas stations, police stations, governor\u2019s offices, police trailers, vehicles and motorcycles belonging to security forces, bases of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and Basij paramilitary forces, supermarkets linked to the IRGC, offices of Iranian regime Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei\u2019s representatives, setting ablaze anything that was owned by the corrupt regime. \u201cAs an individual on the ground I believe only God saved us,\u201d said Basij commander Brigadier General Salar Abnush, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency. Authorities brought helicopters and sprayed bullets from above onto the demonstrators to regain control over the city. On Sunday, November 17, Khamenei associated this uprising to the Iranian opposition People&#039;s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI\/MEK) and ordered an all-out crackdown. \u201cThese are rioters,\u201d he said, adding \u201cthe country security officials should live up to their duties.\u201d \u201cDo whatever it takes to end it,\u201d Khamenei told top security and government officials, according to a Reuters report. These remarks by Khamenei shed light on his deep concerns about the uprising overthrowing his entire regime. He issued orders for a massive crackdown, allowing his forces to launch a killing spree. As a result, they killed at least 1,500 people with direct fire. Following Khamenei\u2019s orders, security forces began shooting demonstrators in the head and raising the number of casualties to create fear among protesters. In some cities, such as Mahshahr in southwest Iran, the regime\u2019s security forces used armored vehicles, helicopters and large-caliber machine guns against protesters. In Mahshahr, armed security forces chased down local youths and forced them into a marsh area. Then they opened fire with heavy machine guns (.50 caliber\/12.7 mm) on the young men hiding in the marshes, killing many of them. The scope of the regime\u2019s crackdown in November 2019 was without a doubt unprecedented in the regime\u2019s four-decade history. Another issue mentioned by many in reference to this uprising was the PMOI\/MEK\u2019s role in this outburst of nationwide protests. This especially includes the regime\u2019s own officials and state media: The main difference of this uprising with previous years was the organized nature of the developments. Regime officials specially mention this in their remarks, referring to the PMOI\/MEK Resistance Units inside Iran as the leading force behind the country\u2019s uprisings. Resistance Units are teams with a few to several members and their main objective during the past few years has lead the country\u2019s uprisings and counter the atmosphere of fear imposed by the regime. On November 17, 2019, Ali Shamkhani, chair of the regime\u2019s Supreme National Security Council, held a press conference focusing on the nationwide protests. \u201cThese individuals are linked to the PMOI\/MEK\u2026 I believe we have arrested 34 MEK members so far and identified a large network of channels that are active not under the MEK banner but following their modus operandi,\u201d he said. Furthermore, heroic women played an incredibly significant role in the November 2019 uprising, showing practical leadership on the streets, bravery and the remarkable speed necessary that is needed in uprisings. If the word on the ground during the December 2017\/January 2018 uprising was the end of the reformists\/principalists scenario within the regime, in November 2019 Iran the people entered a path of uprising to realize their democratic alternative as the only solution forward. The Resistance Units strategy in cities, towns and neighborhoods has found its ground. The Iranian people and their organized resistance movement have reached a point of no return. They have once again proven to the world that the only means to save the Iranian people is to overthrow the ruling mullahs\u2019 regime. Iranian opposition NCRI President-elect Maryam Rajavi said at a ceremony commemorating the martyrs of the November 2019 uprising: \u201cThe world has witnessed one of the most horrific crimes of the 21st century. \u201cLet me emphasize that in the face of these arisen youth, the regime cannot forestall its overthrow.&quot; https:\/\/english.mojahedin.org\/ https:\/\/english.mojahedin.org\/t\/iran-protests\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"lL\" style=\"max-width:100%;width:853px;margin:5px;\"><\/div><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Ingrid Betancourt, a former Colombian lawmaker, and presidential candidate, expressly highlighted this point in last Tuesday\u2019s virtual conference. \u201cT<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">he social classes who are\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">thought<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0in the\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">West<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0to be the legitimizing backdrop support of the Iranian regime were precisely the ones chanting in the streets against Khomeini and Rouhani as they were being killed by the regime&#8217;s suppressive forces<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,\u201d she said.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0regime\u2019s violent response to the protests is as significant as the composition of the protests themselves. Together, these two factors leave\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">the international community<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0with little to no reason for the sort of tepid response that they have given to Iran\u2019s domestic unrest so far.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Those in favor of the appeasement policy<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0have argued that the clerical regime maintained\u00a0too\u00a0secure a hold on power for any mere political intervention to pay dividends. Alternatively, they have downplayed\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">the consequences of the unrest for the Iranian people,\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">in order to<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0argue that\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">it was purely a domestic matter, from which the West should steer clear.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Both of these<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> arguments have always lacked credibility, but they were positively blown up in the aftermath of the November 2019 uprising. The demographic diversity and the\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MEK<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u2019s leadership of the protests made it abundantly clear that the uprising represented a serious challenge to the current regime\u2019s hold on power. And that conclusion has been reaffirmed many times over the past years by internal communications and state media interviews in which regime authorities warn about the growing power and influence of the organized Resistance movement.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Those authorities\u2019 anxiety was reflected during and after the November uprising, in what was arguably some of the worst political violence the country has seen since the 1980s. Whereas the death toll from the January 2018 uprising apparently maxed out at 60, this benchmark was surpassed in a matter of only hours in November 2019. According to frontline reports from the\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MEK<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">over<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a01,500 peaceful protesters were killed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps during last year\u2019s single week of nationwide unrest.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">About 12,000 other protesters were arrested during that time, and most were subjected to torture for the sake of securing false criminal confessions or simply\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">conveying<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0a warning to anyone who would participate in another uprising\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">against the clerical regime. But questions were raised almost immediately about the effectiveness\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">of those warnings, when thousands of Iranians, mostly student activists, poured into the streets for additional protests spanning more than a dozen provinces, just two months after the November crackdown.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Participants in Tuesday\u2019s conference made a point of reiterating those questions, as well as offering their own answers. They universally agreed that widespread unrest would recur in defiance of anything the regime could throw at it. Mrs. Rajavi\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">said<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0that public demonstrations will \u201ccarry on until the mullahs\u2019 religious dictatorship is overthrown.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">T<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">he scale and context of last year\u2019s uprising<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0are testaments to what Mrs. Rajavi said.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">It seems increasingly inevitable that conflict between the Iranian people and the Iranian regime will carry on, and accelerate, for the foreseeable future. In that case, the international community will ultimately have to decide whether to stand on the sidelines or to intervene with expanded economic sanctions and greater diplomatic isolation. But they should understand that under the circumstances, inaction is tantamount to siding with the Iranian regime.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The choice, therefore, is between standing behind a popular movement for freedom and\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">democracy or<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> defending\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">religious fascism\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">that killed 1,500 people in one week\u2019s time. That choice should be the easiest one any democratic nation ever has to make.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/stats.sender.net\/forms\/dGYVLa\/view\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" title=\"Weekly-Signe-up-logo-300x100\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-219239 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Weekly-Signe-up-logo-300x100.png\" alt=\"Weekly-Signe-up-logo-300x100\" width=\"300\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In November 2019, Iran was rocked by a&nbsp;popular&nbsp;uprising that spanned at least 191 cities and reiterated previous, powerful demands for regime change. On the anniversary of that uprising,&nbsp;the Iranian Resistance&nbsp;held [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":229771,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[129,130,141,197,198,204],"class_list":{"0":"post-229769","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-iran-protests","8":"tag-iran","9":"tag-iran-protests","10":"tag-human-rights","11":"tag-mek-iran","12":"tag-ncri","13":"tag-maryam-rajavi"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Protests in Iran Are Inevitable, World Community Faces a Choice<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In November 2019, Iran was rocked by a\u00a0popular\u00a0uprising that spanned at least 191 cities and reiterated previous, powerful demands for 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