Imprisoned civil and human rights activist Narges Mohammadi has called on right organizations to put pressure on the Islamic Republic for its crackdown on popular protests.
Expressing support for the popular protests in the country on Friday, Mohammadi said that the international community should condemn the “killing of people on the streets” similar to the way they put pressure on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
In a message from prison obtained by Radio Farda, she described the Islamic Republic’s "violent" and "repressive" actions as worse than the "aggressor" governments such as Russia.
The activist also called on the people not to abandon the families of those killed and detained by continuing their protest rallies and “mass civil disobedience”, adding that protests are the legal right of the Iranian people.
The main cause of poverty and high prices in Iran is the "widespread systematic looting and corruption" by officials, she claimed, noting that the current miserable situation in the country is the outcome of an "authoritarian government".
Mohammadi was arrested last November, and she was sentenced to eight years in jail and 70 lashes, for trumped-up political charges in a five-minute trial in late January.
Protests began in Iran on May 6 as the government drastically raised food prices, leaving tens of millions of Iranians in danger of facing hunger as inflation surpassing 40 percent has depleted their means to buy basic food.
Several members of the US Congress as well as the State Department have voiced support for protesters, calling on the Biden administration for a more active response to the crackdown on the protests.