RIOTS IN KERMANSHAH

In December 1996 the Western Iranian city of Kermanshah was racked by violent anti-regime demonstrations by the Sunni population of the city. The riots were sparked off by the murder of Shaykh Muhammad Rabi‘i, the elderly imam of the Imam Shafi'ee mosque in the city. It was widely believed that his assassination was the work of government agents.

Our aim here is to draw attention to the policy of the Iranian regime to make as if incidents like the riots in Kermanshah never happened. This is not only true of the regime in Tehran, but also of news agencies all over the world. Violence between Sunnis and Shi'ahs in countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan invariably makes headline news. When the same occurs in Iran, we only run into a conspiracy of silence. Has anyone ever wondered why?

The following is the text of a report released on the 20th of December 1996 by the Foundation for Democracy in Iran. This report, entitled Action Memorandum 030, was published by the said organisation on the Internet.

FDI was the first organization outside of Iran to report on the disturbances in Kermanshah earlier this month. (See Action Memorandum 029, Dec. 4). Two weeks after the violent suppression of anti-regime demonstrations, the situation remains tense, with special security troops patrolling the streets and a ban on all opposition gatherings.

On Dec. 19, we asked one of our monitors in Western Iran to travel to Kermanshah to give us a first-hand report on the situation. "This morning when I arrived in Kermanshah, the gates of the city were under tight security. The Special Guards of the Islamic Revolution and agents of the Ministry of Information and Security (MOIS) patrolled the streets, especially the area around Javanshir Square and the streets leading into it," he reported. "The Special Guards troops I saw were equipped with semi-automatic machine-guns. Some patrolled the area in vehicles with .50 caliber heavy machine-guns mounted on top. The doors of the main Sunni mosque of the city had been closed by the authorities and no one was allowed to enter. The local cemetery was also closed, and relatives of those killed during the disturbances who had come to stage a commemoration ceremony were turned away."

Our monitor notes that while relatives of the victims of the anti-riot troops were not allowed to hold ceremonies for their loved ones, the regime had staged a special ceremony at the same cemetery some two weeks earlier to honor a Law Enforcement Force Colonel, Ali Akbar Najafi. Colonel Najafi was killed by an angry mob during the funeral of Mollah Mohammad Rabiei, the local Sunni cleric whose alleged murder set off the disturbances on Dec. 2.

According to international wire service reports, at least 5 persons were confirmed dead, and dozens wounded in clashes between demonstrators and the LEF. The opposition Iran Nation's Party - which has numerous supporters in Kermanshah and the surrounding region - claims the death toll reached "several dozen" persons, with hundreds wounded. In addition, the INP and other sources report that more than 1,000 persons have been arrested, many of whom have been transported to Tehran. There is reason to fear that some may be tried in secret of crimes against the state and executed.

FDI is also concerned by recent statements by Hojjat-ol eslam Mohammad Hussein Masoumi Rad, the Friday Prayer leader for the Shiite Muslim population of the city of Kermanshah, who blamed the riots on Sunni Muslim fanatics and outside agitators, calling them "enemies of religion." Such inflammatory and divisive comments can only engender further violence.

FDI calls on the international news media and Western governments to break the conspiracy of silence with which they have responded to the Kermanshah disturbances. Anti-government riots in which demonstrators and a senior police officer were killed would have made front page news had occurred in Poland, China, France, or Peru. The people of Iran deserve at least that same respect.