TEHRAN- French security forces have attacked Kurdish protesters and strikes have paralyzed the UK; yet the difference of Western media coverage in comparison with recent events in Iran has been strikingly different.
In France, violence erupted in Paris with clashes between police and protestors from the Kurdish minority group over the murder of three members of their community by a terrorist with a racist motive.
Police attacked the protesters with tear gas as angry Kurds overturned cars with at least one vehicle being burned. Shop windows have been damaged and fires were also set alight near Republic Square, a popular site in France for demonstrations.
Paris police chief Laurent Nunez told state media that dozens of protesters had been arrested and dozens of others sustained injuries.
The demonstrators also threw projectiles at police who responded using different methods including the use of tear gas in an attempt to disperse the crowd. The clashes continued for several hours.
And here comes the controversy.
The Kurdish minority group in France had been protesting after a terrorist killed three people at a Kurdish cultural center and nearby Kurdish cafe in central Paris.
A heinous attack, which prompted the protests to turn into riots.
Paris described the gunman as a “69-year-old man”.
Senior officials in Iran accuse France of instigating the riots and terror that has been witnessed in the Islamic Republic recently.
A foreign ministry spokesman says some countries intentionally incited the rioting as well as extremism in Iran.
Yet, French politicians and media outlets are referring to the riots, the terror, the killing of cold blood of police officers in the most graphic methods imaginable and the torching of public property and ordinary people’s businesses as “peaceful protests” and “peaceful protesters”, who Iranian police are “killing”.
Instead of referring to them as rioters and terrorists, they are being labelled as “peaceful protesters” who have been armed and backed by foreign powers such as France to overthrow the Islamic Republic of Iran.
In France, authorities have acknowledged the gunman who went on the deadly rampage had recently been freed from prison for a saber attack on a Kurdish migrant camp in Paris a year ago.
The clear contradiction is that this was a terrorist not a gunman who fired multiple gunshots on Rue d'Enghien at about midday, creating panic on a street lined with small shops and cafes in the French capital's busy 10th district.
A terrorist with a racist motive to murder a minority community that French authorities allowed to walk free despite having previously been under the radar of French security forces for attempted attacks on the same minority group.
All three of those who died were Kurdish, a lawyer for the Kurdish cultural center says three others have also been wounded, one of them with life threatening injuries.
The murders came ahead of the anniversary of the killings of three Kurdish women in Paris in January 2013.
On one hand, we have France describing “peaceful protesters” in Iran that are committing acts of terror and on the other hand we have what Paris is describing as a “69-year-old man”. But he also committed terrorism by terrorizing a small community and not for the first time.
The riots in Paris were also similar to some of the riots in Tehran and other cities across Iran, but vast caches of weapons and ammunition were discovered by Iranian security forces.
Iran’s foreign ministry says some Western countries played a totally provocative role and incited extremism and rioting in Iran. The ministry says the recent arrests of members of a UK-linked network shows how London played a destructive role in recent riots in the country.
This is the same UK where Saudi-funded and London-based Persian language TV news stations have been reporting on nationwide strikes by shopkeepers in the Iranian capital and elsewhere in protest and opposition to the Islamic Republic.
Multiple investigations have revealed there were no strikes in the bazaars of Tehran or anywhere else in the country. Footage has shown busy streets packed with shoppers.
If anything, a few shopkeepers had complained that they shuttered their stores in fear of rioters and thugs setting fire to their businesses for staying open.
There were no strikes in Iran but that was another issue which Western mainstream media heavily focused on during their ongoing hybrid war against the Islamic Republic.
The United Kingdom waged a huge propaganda campaign on the issue of strikes.
And despite the wide-spread footage showing no strikes were taking place in Iran, the UK repeatedly alleged that there was.
The fake media reports were made on more than one occasion.
There are indeed strikes taking place by an extremely angry public, strongly opposed to their government, but these protests are occurring in the UK itself.
The wave of strikes sweeping the UK will reach its peak this week and really threatens to bring the country to a standstill as workers across so many different sectors take industrial action in protest over pay and conditions.
Further unrest against the British government is widely expected in 2023, as strike ballots for firefighters and teachers close in January, while junior doctors are scheduled to vote next month, and London metro workers have approved a mandate for another six months of industrial action.
Amid the wide-ranging protests in the public and private sectors, the British government has threatened to introduce new tough laws to tackle industrial action despite growing public anger.
Here are just some of the strikes that took place and will take place in the United Kingdom not the Islamic Republic of Iran, according to British media outlets.
Monday, December 12
A strike by workers for the UK National Health Service took place in Northern Ireland.
Tuesday, December 13
Members of the RMT Union working for Network Rail and 14 other train operating companies walked out.
Members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union took action that spread over the month and affected numerous government agencies and departments.
Staff at the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) went on strike.
Wednesday, December 14
Members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) took industrial action.
More than 115,000 postal staff protested all the way to the run-up to Christmas and which disrupted the delivery of mail.
Other strikes included the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) members working for Network Rail and the 14 train operating companies.
Thursday, December 15
Up to 100,000 nurses with the Royal College of Nursing took part in the first of a series of strikes across 53 National Health Service (NHS) organizations in England. Nurses also took industrial action in Wales and Northern Ireland.
That was the first strike by nurses in the history of the UK.
Members of the CWU union went on strike for two days with staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland staging industrial action.
Friday, December 16
PCS members working for National Highways began the first of 12 days of strike action over the holiday period.
Strikes also took place by RMT union members at Network Rail and 14 train operating companies. The Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) union members and bus workers walked out.
Saturday, December 17
The UK saw further strike action by RMT members working for Network Rail and 14 train operating companies. Bus workers for National Highways also went on strike.
Sunday, December 18
The DVSA strike continues for staff in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Monday 19 December
Members of the Unite union who work at the Highlands and Islands airports in Scotland walked out disrupting 11 airports.
DVSA driving examiners also went on strike.
Tuesday, December 20
More strike action by nurses from the RCN union in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The DVSA strike also continued in parts of the country.
Wednesday, December 21
Ambulance workers and other NHS staff staged a strike coordinated by GMB, Unison and Unite in England and Wales.
Thursday, December 22
Cleaners with the RMT union began the first of a number of strike days at rail firms.
Members of Unite who work at the Highlands and Islands airports in Scotland walked out again.
National Highways workers in London and the south-east took strike action.
Friday, December 23
RMT cleaners, this time, for a number of rail companies and the DVSA staff in parts of England and Wales all took strike action.
CWU union members restarted nationwide strike action against their employer Royal Mail.
Border Force members began a wave of strikes at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Birmingham, Cardiff and Glasgow airports. National Highway workers in London and the south of England continue their strike.
Saturday, December 24
CWU union members continue their strike for a second consecutive day.
Members of RMT working for Network Rail strike again, this time mostly affecting engineering workers.
PCS members at Border Force continue strike action at airports.
The DVSA strike continues in the north-west, Yorkshire and Humber and north Wales, as will the National Highways strike in London and the south-east.
Sunday, December 25
The RMT strikes continued despite no services running on Christmas day.
Border Force workers continued strike action at airports, alongside PCS members who work for National Highways in London and the south-east.
Monday, December 26
The RMT union rail strike went ahead again
More strike action at airports by members of the country’s Border Force.
Tuesday, December 27
The RMT strike continues until 6am.
Wednesday 28 December
The DVSA driving examiners’ strikes will start in the east of England, east Midlands, West Midlands and parts of London.
PCS members at Border Force continue strike action at airports.
Thursday, December 29
The DVSA strike continues in several regions in England.
PCS members at Border Force continue strike action at airports.
Friday, December 30
Strikes by National Highways employees will kick off in the West Midlands and the south-west.
The DVSA strike continues in parts of the country.
PCS members at Border Force continue strike action at airports.
Saturday, December 31
RMT members working as cleaners for a number of rail companies are due to take action.
Action by National Highways employees will continue in the West Midlands and south-west.
PCS members at Border Force continue strike action at airports.
The DVSA strike continues in the east of England, east Midlands, West Midlands and parts of London.
Tuesday, January 3
RMT members working for National Rail restart strike action.
National Highways traffic officers to begin nationwide strike.
The DVSA strike continues in the east of England, east Midlands, West Midlands and parts of London, while staff at the RPA resume their action.
Wednesday, January 4
The RMT rail strike continues.
Second day of nationwide strike by National Highways traffic officers.
The DVSA driving examiners’ strikes will start in London, south-east England, south-west England and Wales. RPA staff continue their action.
Thursday, January 5
Train drivers represented by Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (Aslef) launch a national day of strike action.
The DVSA strike continues in London, south-east England, south-west England and Wales. RPA staff continue their action.
Friday, January 6
The RMT rail strike continues.
The DVSA strike continues in London, south-east England, south-west England and Wales. RPA staff continue their action.
National Highways workers in the east Midlands and eastern regions will begin strike action.
Saturday, January 7
The RMT rail strike continues.
The DVSA strike continues, while the National Highways workers in the east Midlands and eastern regions take strike action for the second consecutive day.
Sunday, January 8
The DVSA strike continues in parts of England and Wales.
Monday, January 9
The DVSA strike continues
Tuesday, January 10
The DVSA strike continues. RPA staff continue their action.
Wednesday, January 18
Nurses represented by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) begin an unprecedented second round of strike action in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Thursday, January 19
The nurses continue strike action into a second day, another historic walkout.
The list is endless, but these are workers across almost all public sectors as well as private sectors who want to see the overthrow of the government in London, not Tehran.
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