Attack on a Religious Seminary During Protests on Friday Night

The director of the religious seminary in Eshtehard, near Karaj, reported that a group of participants in a protest gathering on Friday night, August 12, attacked this religious school and claimed that the police had "arrested" several of them. He estimated the number of these protesters to be "about 500". Ali Hendiani stated on Saturday, August 13, in an interview with Iranian news agencies, including Fars, that a group of protesters in Eshtehard County, Alborz Province, intended to "break the doors and set fire to" the seminary, but their efforts were thwarted by police action. He claimed that these individuals threw "stones and bricks" at the seminary's sign and "broke the windows of the prayer hall". The website Hawza News republished an image previously published in January of last year, titled as an attack on the Takestan seminary, in the news related to the Eshtehard seminary. Mr. Hendiani also mentioned that these protesters were dispersed by riot police. He added, "The police are currently identifying them house by house and are in the process of arresting them." He did not explain how the police are "identifying" the protesters. Meanwhile, the Hawza News website used an image of broken windows of a building in its report without any explanation, an image that investigations show was previously published in January of last year regarding an attack on the Takestan seminary. Additionally, videos have been circulated on social media claiming to be related to the presence of protesters in front of the Eshtehard seminary. In one video from Eshtehard, Karaj, recorded on Friday evening, the chant "Tank, cannon, firecracker, the cleric must disappear" can be heard from a group of marchers. Radio Farda does not have reporters in Iran and cannot independently verify these videos. The news of the "attack" on the Eshtehard seminary comes at a time when officials of the Islamic Republic have previously reported attacks by protesters during last year's protests and other gatherings on government and public centers. On the other hand, some political figures have previously suggested that the Islamic Republic government itself may have destroyed public property to promote against the protesters and suppress them severely, attributing the destruction to the protesters. In last year's protests, a video of the burning of the Khomeini-Shahr seminary was published, which was later denied by Mahmoud Javad Abtahi, the representative of this county in parliament, who dismissed reports about it.