Iran rebukes Nasheed over post on civil unrest

The Iranian Embassy has responded to a post by former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed, in which he stated that as a Muslim nation, the Maldives must stand with the Iranian people during their ongoing protests rather than protecting their government.

In his post on X yesterday, Nasheed argued that the citizens of Iran have taken to the streets to free themselves from decades of oppression and to escape the skyrocketing cost of living. He emphasized that since the Iranian people are Muslims, both the Muslim world and the international community should side with the citizens instead of the regime.

Replying to the post, the official X account of the Iranian Embassy in Sri Lanka stated that during a 12-day conflict last June, "Zionist colonial forces" launched powerful military strikes targeting Iranian cities, civilians, and infrastructure.

The response further alleged that systematic acts of inhumane killings targeting Iranian citizens had been carried out. The Embassy noted that as a result of these attacks, more than a thousand people, including children, had been martyred.

The Iranian Embassy asserted that the Iranian people remained steadfast against these "inhumane and morally degraded" attacks by Zionist forces.

It also highlighted that direct assistance provided by the US government to these strikes further exacerbated the situation.

"The purpose of this is to create chaos on the streets of Iran and to destroy the safety and security of the general public," the Embassy stated.

It further claimed that Iranian women, children, and innocent civilians had become victims of terrorist acts carried out in cities by groups linked to Mossad.

According to Iran, mosques were set on fire, hospitals were devastated, and civilians in streets and markets were attacked during the unrest. They also reported significant damage to metro stations and banks.

Ending the post with a direct question to Nasheed, the Embassy asked: "In this situation, which side are you on?"

The protests in Iran initially began last Sunday with merchants but have since spread to various cities as the general public joined the movement. Clashes between protesters and security forces have led to fatalities in several locations.

The Iranian government has warned of severe punishments for illegal assembly, public disturbance, property damage, or encouraging unlawful gatherings.

Meanwhile, the United States has warned that it will strike Iran if the government continues to attack protesters.