Dozens of Protesters Against the Drying of Lake Urmia Arrested in Several Cities

Reports received by Voice of America indicate that government forces of the Islamic Republic arrested dozens of protesters against the drying of Lake Urmia in several cities, including Tabriz, on Sunday, September 5. Previously, four parties, including the Azerbaijan Central Party, had issued a call for protests in the cities of East and West Azerbaijan provinces as well as Ardabil on that Sunday. This call received support from civil and environmental groups and activists. The Azerbaijani Political Prisoners Defense Association in Iran has so far announced the identities of at least 17 of those arrested. According to this association, "Yashar Hassanpour, Youssef Kari, Farshid Pichganlou, Mohammad Sheikh Al-Islami, Leila Ghazizadeh, Mehrdad Sheikhi, Behnam Sheikhi, Karim Ismailzadeh, Habib Negahban, Shahin Barzgar, Mohsen Ebrahimi, Peyman Ebrahimi, Mohammad-Reza Moharami, Omid Mostafazadeh, Sima Ali Pour, Akbar Azad, and Afshin Nazari were arrested in the cities of Tabriz, Tehran, Miyaneh, and Ardabil." Reports indicate that most arrests occurred even before the protests began. So far, Islamic Republic officials have not provided information regarding the reasons for the arrests or the whereabouts of those detained. Reports suggest that government forces were deployed in various cities following the call for protests against the "deliberate drying policy of Lake Urmia." The Political Prisoners Defense Association in Azerbaijan noted that government agents had summoned numerous activists in various cities to intelligence offices in recent days. The gradual drying of Lake Urmia has drawn significant criticism towards the governments of the Islamic Republic. Critics accuse these governments and executive and legislative bodies of neglecting the drying of Lake Urmia. In this context, environmental and civil activists have repeatedly held protests in the cities surrounding Lake Urmia to save the lake, which have faced government crackdowns. Additionally, Ali Salajegheh, the head of the Environmental Protection Organization, acknowledged the worsening situation of Lake Urmia on August 20, following the release of numerous images and documents about its critical condition. Meanwhile, the Tasnim news agency, close to the Revolutionary Guards, denied the death of Lake Urmia on August 18, quoting Mojtaba Zoloudi, the deputy for marine and wetland environments of the Environmental Protection Organization, who claimed there was a "140,000-hectare increase in the area under cultivation in its watershed."