
ArmInfo. For the past three days, Iran has been attempting to restrict access to communications to prevent the spread of street clashes and bring the situation under control. Azerbaijan expert Tatevik Hayrapetyan wrote about this on her Facebook page.
"In this situation, both yesterday and on the first day, videos of demonstrations from various parts of Iran were distributed much earlier and much faster on a number of Azerbaijani channels. Moreover, the most active anti-government channels of the Iranian diaspora distributed these same videos even later. Most likely, among the protesters, there is a group of people who have obtained the appropriate Azerbaijani cards and access to Azerbaijani networks in numerous border areas," the expert noted.
In her opinion, this is something new, a new tactic being used after the 12-day Iran-Israel war. At the same time, as Hayrapetyan noted, this demonstrates deep cooperation between Israel and Azerbaijan, including in the context of intervention in Iran's domestic political problems.
As a reminder, protests erupted in Iran on December 28 following the collapse of the national currency and the soaring prices of essential goods. Initially social protests, they later escalated into riots, the burning of buildings, and the killing of law enforcement officers.
The Iranian authorities responded harshly to the protests. The internet has been shut down in the country for a third day. Conflicting reports of arrests and deaths in Tehran and other Iranian cities are being released. Amid the protests in Iran, the US President threatened the Iranian authorities with strikes if "peaceful protesters" are killed. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote: "The United States of America stands with the brave Iranian people."
In response, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaking to members of parliament on Sunday, January 11, stated that Israel and US military bases would be legitimate targets for Iran in the event of a US attack. Meanwhile, the exiled son of the former Shah of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, has once again released video messages calling on the population to take to the streets, declaring his intention to return to Iran.
Furthermore, amid the unrest, the Crown Prince of the Qajar dynasty, Babek Mirza, also residing in the United States, has also claimed his right to the throne. Some believe he may proclaim a South Azerbaijan Turkic Republic in Tabriz and become the leader of the South Azerbaijani Turks, a move that would be supported by Ankara and Baku.