A Daily Briefing on Iran: The vicious Islamic regime arrests earthquake victims who complained

Iran Press News: Translation by Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi. Based on three reports here, here and here.

The inhumane Islamic regime not only has not come to the aid and assistance of the victims of the Friday, March 31st earthquake in the province of Lorestan, it has also viciously attacked and beaten a number of those who complained and protested the lack of relief.

The regime-run news agency IRNA reported: "A group of the earthquake victims gathered, on Saturday afternoon, in front of one of the regime's relief centers protesting the lack of relief and demanding assistance such as food, tents and medical care for their families."

Mehdi Hashemi, a deputy of the Ministry of Interior of the Islamic regime who traveled to Boroujerd, one of the cities hardest hit in the earthquake, admitted that the protestors had in fact been arrested. He called the hungry and afflicted victims of the earthquake “agitators and hoodlums” and said: "those who were selfish and wanted to disrupt the order were arrested. We will make full use of all security and disciplinary forces including the revolutionary guards, the Basij and the army in order quash any unrest."

The Islamic regime has also closed all the roads and has announced that no private citizen is permitted to deliver any assistance to areas hit by the earthquake. The shelterless survivors also now have to endure snow and high winds, as well as floods.

During the last several days, the regimes authorities produced various bogus statistics as well as contradictions and mixed messages claiming to have sent 11,000 tents to devastated areas; however on Tuesday, April 4th, it was announced that the real number of tents sent was in fact, no more than 2000, which was meant to provide shelter 250,000 people. READ MORE

The Deputy mayor of the city of Borrower, in an interview with the regime-run news agency MIRASS, denied all of the regime's boasts in having mobilized assistance groups and aid packages. He added: "250,000 people are without homes or shelter and we require 30,000 tents and so far we have only received all of 2000. We have also only received 400 heaters (meaning 625 people to one heater); the victims are wrapping themselves in plastic to sleep. If things continue in this vein thousands of people will freeze to death."

It is reported that the earthquake destroyed 43,000 residences in the city of Boroujerd and the town of Odorous. There is still very little known of the damages sustained in the surrounding villages and rural areas. The latest reports indicate that those who died in the earthquake and whose bodies have not as of yet been dug out from underneath the rubble [due to a lack of machinery] have begun emitting a stench which threatens to lead to all kinds of diseases and infections in the area.

The regime-run site AFTER, quoting Moshe Yeshiva, the representative of Borrower to the Males (The Islamic Parliament's Assembly) wrote: "The Hialeah Hammer - The Islamic Republic of Iran's Red Cross - in this situation has not only not assisted the victims of the earthquake, it has in fact acted against their well-being as well.” Received reports indicate that in a repeat performance of the December 2003, Bam earthquake, this organization has not only prevented all assistance from reaching people who are in need of relief, it has begun robbing all cash or donations of food, heaters and other items, in order to either pocket or sell on the black markets for the proceeds to be embezzled by various Mullahs.