CNN —
Iran’s lawmakers have urged the country’s judiciary “to show no leniency” to protesters in a letter quoted by state broadcaster Press TV on Sunday as thousands continue to gather on the streets despite threats of arrest.
The Islamic Republic faces one of the largest and most unprecedented demonstrations of dissent in the wake of the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman from Iran who was allegedly arrested for improperly wearing her hijab.
In an open letter signed by 227 of Iran’s 290 MPs, Press TV reports that lawmakers are calling for the protesters to be taught a “good lesson” to deter others who threaten the Iranian government’s authority.
“We, the representatives of this nation, ask all state officials, including the judiciary, to treat those who have waged war (against the Islamic establishment) and attacked the lives and property of people like Daesh (terrorists) in a way that would serve as a good lesson in no time,” the letter read, according to state-run Press TV.
The lawmakers added that such punishment – the methods of which were not specified – “would prove to everyone that the life, property, security and honor of our dear people is a red line for this (Islamic) establishment, and that it would show no leniency.” to anyone in that regard.”
Iran has charged at least 1,000 people in Tehran province for their alleged involvement in the nationwide protests over Amini’s death, the largest dissent of its kind in years, state news agency IRNA reported. Their processes are public and have been running for more than a week.
Norway-based human rights group Iran Human Rights (IHR) said in a report Wednesday that dozens of protesters face charges such as “enmity against God” and “corruption on earth” that carry the death sentence.
The lawmakers’ letter also reiterates the former Iranian government’s claims that the ongoing protests – which it describes as riots – were instigated by the United States and other enemies of Iran. The Iranian government has not provided any evidence to support its claims of foreign involvement in the protest movement.
Senior United Nations official Javaid Rehman told the UN Security Council last week that up to 14,000 people, including journalists, activists, lawyers and educators, have been arrested since protests erupted in Iran in mid-September.
Rehman, special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran, said the “unabated violent response by the security forces” left at least 277 people dead.
CNN cannot independently verify the arrest figures or the death toll – exact figures cannot be confirmed by anyone outside the Iranian government – and varying estimates have been given by opposition groups, international human rights organizations and local journalists.