2005 Ahwazi unrest
Encyclopedia
2005 Ahvaz unrest or April 15 Ahvaz Protests were violent riots, initiated by Iranian Arabs in the city of Ahvaz
in southwestern Iranian province of Khuzestan. The unrest erupted on April 15, 2005, and lasted for 4 days. Initially, the Iranian Interior Ministry stated that only one person had been killed, however an official at a hospital in Ahvaz said that between 15 and 20 mortal casualties. Government officials blamed the unrest on Britain, whose troops based just across the border in southern Iraq. Following the unrest, several bombings
were carried out in Ahvaz, killing 28 people. In 2006, Iran executed five Arab separatists, convicted of carrying out the bombings in 2005.
coastline. In Khuzestan, Arabs are the dominant ethnic group in Shadegan
, Hoveyzeh and Susangerd, a majority in Mahshahr
and Khorramshahr
, a minority in Abadan
and together with Persians, Arabs are one of the two main ethnic groups in Ahvaz
.
The Constitution of Iran guarantees freedom of cultural expression and linguistic diversity. Khūzestān Province has radio
and television
stations in Arabic. School education is in Persian
, the official language
, but use of Arabic is allowed under the constitution of the Islamic Republic. Article 15 of the constitution states:
However, some human rights groups have accused the Iranian government of discrimination and other human rights violations against Iranian Arabs and violating the constitutional guarantees of equality. Amnesty International
says:
According to the US Department of State:
According to Article 16 of Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran , Arabic is taught in all classes of secondary school and in all areas of study including universities.
, began circulating on the blogosphere, and was widely circulated by hand and subsequently cited in a report by al-Jazeera network, a popular Arab television station with a big following among Khuzestan's Arab population. The fake letter proposed measures to reduce the proportion of Arabs in Khuzestan. The letter inspired crowds of young Arab rioters to attack government buildings and institutions in Ahvaz city. Some Iran experts and analysts at the time speculated that the move was part of a plan by the conservative establishment to discredit the reformist camp among Arabs in the run-up to the 2005 presidential poll.
A spokesman for the Ahvaz Arab People Democratic Popular Front, Abu Shaker al-Ahwazi, mentioned the names of 20 people who he said had been killed in the clashes. He said that "dozens of people had been wounded and 300 others had been arrested." Amnesty International
has cited "unconfirmed reports" that 29 people were killed. Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported at least 50 deaths.
News reports and accounts have put the number of fatal casualties at between 5 to 20.
, who is an ethnic Arab, was dispatched by the Reformist Government of Khatami, to the Ahvaz area to look into the reasons behind the unrest. He met with local leaders, and he stressed that ethnic Arabs are an integral part of the country but acknowledged that Khuzestan Province suffers from "underdevelopment".
Following the riots, in June 2005 four bombings by Arab separatist militants in Ahvaz and two others in Tehran killed 10 people and injured at least 90. Two other bombings in Ahvaz, one in October 2005 and another in January 2005, killed 12 people. In 2006, Iran executed five Arab separatists convicted of carrying out the bombings in 2005.
According to a April 2006 report by the Amnesty International, on 4 November 2005, during a Muslim feast celebrating the end of Ramadan, several hundred Iranian Arab demonstrators marched towards the centre of Ahvaz
city, and were met by the security forces, who reportedly fired tear gas grenades into the crowd causing two youths to fall into the Karoun River and drown, apparently under the effects of the tear gas which caused temporary paralysis. Amnesty International has also stated that there were further clashes in Khuzestan between Iranian Arabs and the security forces on 11 and 12 January 2006, during the Muslim Feast of Sacrifice, which reportedly resulted in 3 deaths and 40 injured persons. The demonstrators were reportedly demanding "an end to Arab persecution, poverty and unemployment, and the release of political prisoners detained since April 2005".
On April 15th, 2011, there was a protest by the Sunni minority in Ahvaz
, to mark the sixth anniversary of the 2005 events. In a letter, written to the UN high commissioner for human rights, Iran's Nobel Peace Prize
laureate Shirin Ebadi
stated that "more than 12 people were killed, around 20 injured and tens of protesters have been arrested."
Ahvaz
-History:For a more comprehensive historical treatment of the area, see the history section of Khūzestān Province.-Ancient history:Ahvaz is the anagram of "Avaz" and "Avaja" which appear in Darius's epigraph...
in southwestern Iranian province of Khuzestan. The unrest erupted on April 15, 2005, and lasted for 4 days. Initially, the Iranian Interior Ministry stated that only one person had been killed, however an official at a hospital in Ahvaz said that between 15 and 20 mortal casualties. Government officials blamed the unrest on Britain, whose troops based just across the border in southern Iraq. Following the unrest, several bombings
Ahvaz Bombings
The Ahvaz bombings were a series of bomb explosions, that took place mostly in Ahvaz, Iran in 2005-2006, and were blamed on Ahvaz separatist organizations of Sunni Arabs. The bombings were linked to the violent April 15 unrest in Ahvaz, prior to the bombings...
were carried out in Ahvaz, killing 28 people. In 2006, Iran executed five Arab separatists, convicted of carrying out the bombings in 2005.
Background
The Arabs of Iran are concentrated in the province of Khuzistan and number between half a million to 2 million. Most Iranian Arabs are Shi'a, but a small minority of Sunni Muslim Arabs live along the Persian GulfPersian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
coastline. In Khuzestan, Arabs are the dominant ethnic group in Shadegan
Shadegan
Shadegan is a city in and the capital of Shadegan County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 48,642, in 8,600 families.-External links:*...
, Hoveyzeh and Susangerd, a majority in Mahshahr
Mahshahr
Bandar-e Mahshahr is a city in and the capital of Mahshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 109,927, in 24,110 families....
and Khorramshahr
Khorramshahr
Khorramshahr is a city in and the capital of Khorramshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 123,866, in 26,385 families.Khorramshahr is a port city located approximately north of Abadan...
, a minority in Abadan
Abadan
Abadan is a city in and the capital of Abadan County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. It lies on Abadan Island , from the Persian Gulf, near the Iraqi-Iran border. The civilian population of the city dropped to near zero during the eight-years Iran–Iraq War. In 1992, only 84,774 had returned to live...
and together with Persians, Arabs are one of the two main ethnic groups in Ahvaz
Ahvaz
-History:For a more comprehensive historical treatment of the area, see the history section of Khūzestān Province.-Ancient history:Ahvaz is the anagram of "Avaz" and "Avaja" which appear in Darius's epigraph...
.
The Constitution of Iran guarantees freedom of cultural expression and linguistic diversity. Khūzestān Province has radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
stations in Arabic. School education is in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, the official language
Official language
An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
, but use of Arabic is allowed under the constitution of the Islamic Republic. Article 15 of the constitution states:
However, some human rights groups have accused the Iranian government of discrimination and other human rights violations against Iranian Arabs and violating the constitutional guarantees of equality. Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
says:
According to the US Department of State:
According to Article 16 of Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran , Arabic is taught in all classes of secondary school and in all areas of study including universities.
Causes
A forged letter attributed to Mohammad-Ali Abtahi, an adviser to Iran's Reormist President Mohammad KhatamiMohammad Khatami
Sayyid Mohammad Khātamī is an Iranian scholar, philosopher, Shiite theologian and Reformist politician. He served as the fifth President of Iran from August 2, 1997 to August 3, 2005. He also served as Iran's Minister of Culture in both the 1980s and 1990s...
, began circulating on the blogosphere, and was widely circulated by hand and subsequently cited in a report by al-Jazeera network, a popular Arab television station with a big following among Khuzestan's Arab population. The fake letter proposed measures to reduce the proportion of Arabs in Khuzestan. The letter inspired crowds of young Arab rioters to attack government buildings and institutions in Ahvaz city. Some Iran experts and analysts at the time speculated that the move was part of a plan by the conservative establishment to discredit the reformist camp among Arabs in the run-up to the 2005 presidential poll.
Casualties
The Iranian Interior Ministry stated that only one person had been killed, while an official at a hospital in Ahvaz said that between 15 and 20 mortal casualties. Another government official said clashes with security services resulted in 3 or 4 deaths.A spokesman for the Ahvaz Arab People Democratic Popular Front, Abu Shaker al-Ahwazi, mentioned the names of 20 people who he said had been killed in the clashes. He said that "dozens of people had been wounded and 300 others had been arrested." Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
has cited "unconfirmed reports" that 29 people were killed. Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported at least 50 deaths.
News reports and accounts have put the number of fatal casualties at between 5 to 20.
Aftermath
The Iranian government officials blamed the Khuzestan unrest on UK, which hosts the headquarters of the Iranian Arab militant group "Al-Ahwaz Arab Peoples Democratic Popular Front". The government also temporarily banned broadcasts by the Arabic-language satellite-television station Al-Jazeera, accusing it of fanning the unrest. Ali Yunesi, the intelligence minister at the time, said those arrested in Khuzestan were mainly "young, innocent people" who had been provoked by "real criminals". Defense Minister at the time - Ali ShamkhaniAli Shamkhani
Ali Shamkhani is an Iranian admiral and politician. He was the Minister of Defense from August 19, 1997 until August 24, 2005 and was replaced by Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar.He is born in 1955 in Ahvaz, Khuzestan, he earned a B.S...
, who is an ethnic Arab, was dispatched by the Reformist Government of Khatami, to the Ahvaz area to look into the reasons behind the unrest. He met with local leaders, and he stressed that ethnic Arabs are an integral part of the country but acknowledged that Khuzestan Province suffers from "underdevelopment".
Following the riots, in June 2005 four bombings by Arab separatist militants in Ahvaz and two others in Tehran killed 10 people and injured at least 90. Two other bombings in Ahvaz, one in October 2005 and another in January 2005, killed 12 people. In 2006, Iran executed five Arab separatists convicted of carrying out the bombings in 2005.
According to a April 2006 report by the Amnesty International, on 4 November 2005, during a Muslim feast celebrating the end of Ramadan, several hundred Iranian Arab demonstrators marched towards the centre of Ahvaz
Ahvaz
-History:For a more comprehensive historical treatment of the area, see the history section of Khūzestān Province.-Ancient history:Ahvaz is the anagram of "Avaz" and "Avaja" which appear in Darius's epigraph...
city, and were met by the security forces, who reportedly fired tear gas grenades into the crowd causing two youths to fall into the Karoun River and drown, apparently under the effects of the tear gas which caused temporary paralysis. Amnesty International has also stated that there were further clashes in Khuzestan between Iranian Arabs and the security forces on 11 and 12 January 2006, during the Muslim Feast of Sacrifice, which reportedly resulted in 3 deaths and 40 injured persons. The demonstrators were reportedly demanding "an end to Arab persecution, poverty and unemployment, and the release of political prisoners detained since April 2005".
On April 15th, 2011, there was a protest by the Sunni minority in Ahvaz
Ahvaz
-History:For a more comprehensive historical treatment of the area, see the history section of Khūzestān Province.-Ancient history:Ahvaz is the anagram of "Avaz" and "Avaja" which appear in Darius's epigraph...
, to mark the sixth anniversary of the 2005 events. In a letter, written to the UN high commissioner for human rights, Iran's Nobel Peace Prize
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
laureate Shirin Ebadi
Shirin Ebadi
Shirin Ebadi is an Iranian lawyer, a former judge and human rights activist and founder of Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran. On 10 October 2003, Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her significant and pioneering efforts for democracy and human rights, especially women's,...
stated that "more than 12 people were killed, around 20 injured and tens of protesters have been arrested."