Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Wednesday praised the country’s people for foiling a “very dangerous” plot, after violence erupted during protests this month against a fuel price hike. The demonstrations broke out on November 15, hours after the shock announcement at midnight that the price of petrol would be immediately raised by as much as 200 per cent.
They quickly turned violent and saw petrol pumps torched, police stations attacked and shops looted, before being quashed within a few days.
Officials have not yet given overall figures on the number of casualties or arrests made during the unrest which affected much of the country. “The people foiled a deep, vast and very dangerous conspiracy on which a lot of money was spent for destruction, viciousness and the killing of people,” Khamenei said, quoted by state television.