Videos shared on social media show the home of the leader of Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, on fire, with activists saying it was set on fire by protesters – a claim rejected by state media. Reuters and Agence France-Presse said on Friday they had verified the locations of videos showing the late leader’s house on fire, with crowds of anti-government protesters marching past, in the town of Khomein in Markazi province. The semi-official Tasnim news agency, however, denied that Khomeini’s house was set on fire, saying a small number of people had gathered outside the house. “The report is a lie,” Tasnim news agency reported, adding, “The doors of the house of the late founder of the great revolution are open to the public.” News agencies could not independently verify the dates the videos were shot. Activist network 1500Tasvir said the incident happened on Thursday. The late leader’s house was turned into a museum after his death in 1989. Iranians mourn in front of the coffins of people killed in a shooting attack during their funeral in the city of Izeh in Iran’s Khuzestan province [Alireza Mohammadi/Isna via AFP] The videos emerged as nationwide protests swept across Iranian cities following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in mid-September. She died in the custody of the morality police after being detained for not following the country’s dress code for women. This week, there was a new wave of protests to mark the anniversary of a previous round of deadly protests in 2019, when hundreds of people were killed as they took to the streets following a fuel price hike. Many cities across the country saw chaotic scenes, with the deadliest incident on Wednesday night in the southwestern city of Izeh in Khuzestan province, when at least seven people died – including two boys aged nine and 13. Anti-government Iranians blamed the authorities for the incidents, while Iranian authorities said two “terrorists” on a motorcycle opened fire on a crowd using a rifle. On Tuesday, at least three protesters were killed in demonstrations that broke out in three different cities, according to human rights groups based abroad. So far at least five people have been sentenced to death in cases linked to the protests, according to the Iranian judiciary. Human rights groups based abroad have estimated that nearly 400 people have been killed since the protests began, but Iranian authorities have yet to release official tallies.
