On the 14th of February, Ahwazi citizens once again organized a peaceful protest. The protest this time was not only in front of the governorate building, but included other areas of Ahwaz too. The protestors demanded that the government takes immediate action to find a solution for desertification, which is the main reason behind the recent sand storms as well as the disastrous environmental situation, since Ahwaz is the most polluted city on earth.
The Ahwazi protestors chanted slogans against the governor who refused to come out and listen to the people, and who gave orders to the police to break up the protest using force so that the number of protestors does not increase. The police also prevented the protestors from getting to the crowded area of Naderi through the closure of the bridge that leads to that area.
This is Ahwazis’ third protest in one week against the regime’s policies. Ahwazi activists from Ahwaz have reported that the province will be witnessing major demonstrations in the next few days to:
force the government to retreat from its destructive projects that target the Ahwazi land and human
to condemn the ethnic cleansing that takes place by drying out the River of Karoon and changing its direction to the central parts of the country; the River of Karoon, which is Ahwazis’ main source of drinking water and agriculture
and to condemn the air pollution caused by factories operated by non-Ahwazis in Ahwaz, that deliberately ignore the environmental laws which in the previous months have caused acid rains.
