PARIS:&nbsp;Iran&#39;s top police officer issued an ultimatum on Monday to protesters who joined what authorities have deemed &quot;riots,&quot; saying they must hand themselves in within three days or face the full force of the law. But the government also pledged to tackle economic hardships that sparked the demonstrations, which were met with a crackdown that rights groups say has left thousands dead. The protests constituted the biggest challenge to the Iranian leadership in years, with the full scale of the violence yet to emerge amid an internet blackout. National police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan on Monday urged young people &quot;deceived&quot; into joining the &quot;riots&quot; to turn themselves in and receive lighter punishment. Those &quot;who became unwittingly involved in the riots are considered to be deceived individuals, not enemy soldiers&quot; and &quot;will be treated with leniency,&quot; he told state television. Officials have said the demonstrations were peaceful before descending into chaos, fuelled by Iran&#39;s arch-foes, the United States and Israel, in an effort to destabilise the nation. The heads of the country&#39;s executive, legislative, and judicial branches on Monday all pledged to work &quot;around the clock&quot; in &quot;resolving livelihood and economic problems&quot;, according to a joint statement published by state television. But they would also &quot;decisively punish&quot; the instigators of &quot;terrorist incidents,&quot; said the statement from President Masoud Pezeshkian, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei. The scale of the crackdown has emerged piecemeal as Iran remains under an unprecedented internet shutdown that is now in its 11th day. &#39;New test&#39;&nbsp;Alarm has grown over the possibility that authorities will use capital punishment against protesters. The United Nations on Monday warned the country was using executions as &quot;a tool of state intimidation.&quot; Iran reportedly executed 1,500 people last year, UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday that authorities &quot;must break the back of the seditionists.&quot; Internet access would &quot;gradually&quot; return to normal this week, Hossein Afshin, Iran&#39;s vice president for science, technology, and the knowledge economy, said Monday on state television, after limited access briefly returned the day before. Pezeshkian criticised the internet restrictions, urging &quot;better governance&quot; of cyberspace. Images from the capital Tehran, showed buildings and billboards destroyed during the rallies. In Iran&#39;s second-largest city of Mashhad, damage to public infrastructure exceeded $15 million, Mayor Mohammadreza Qalandar Sharif told state television. Outside Iran, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of neighbouring Turkey, in his first comments on the protests, described the unrest as a &quot;new test&quot; for Tehran, pledging Turkey would &quot;stand against any initiative&quot; that would drag the region into chaos. &quot;We believe that, with a... policy prioritizing dialogue and diplomacy, our Iranian brothers will, God willing, get through this trap-filled period,&quot; he said in a televised speech.

This image shows woman using mobile phone in Tehran.

Asia

The protests constitute biggest challenge to Iranian leadership in years, with the full scale of the violence yet to emerge amid an internet blackout; National police chief urges young people "deceived" into joining the "riots" to turn themselves in and receive lighter punishment.





Iran warns protesters who joined 'riots' to surrender

Muhammad Imad Abbas

ISLAMABAD: Afghanistan restored internet after a two-day blockage following directives from the office of the interim Prime Minister Mullah Hassan Akhund, the state-owned TOLO news agency said on Wednesday. Panic spread across the country on Monday when internet connectivity, including mobile services, was abruptly cut without any prior warning from the Taliban administration, leaving approximately 42 million people disconnected from the world. This nationwide disruption affected government institutions, banking sectors, customs operations across the border, and visa application processes. Several Afghan provinces confirmed the internet shutdown followed a decree by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada aimed at combating immorality, reported&nbsp;AFP. &ldquo;From the past 24 hours, we have been trying to reach our father, but every call goes unanswered,&rdquo; said Jameela from Pakistan, who had been desperately trying to contact her father in Kabul. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t know if he is safe.&rdquo; While reports emerged of the restoration of internet services in parts of Afghanistan following directives, millions like Jameela were affected by the internet blackout. This disruption not only upended lives across Afghanistan but also caused disturbances in neighbouring Pakistan. Visa disruptionThe internet disruption also severely affected consular services. The Embassy of Pakistan in Kabul was unable to issue visas to Afghan nationals during the outage, according to Pakistani digital media outlet&nbsp;The Khorasan Diary. In addition, the internet blackout caused serious problems for people applying for visas, said Afghan journalist Farishta Aziz. Since most visa procedures are online, applicants must submit forms, upload documents, and book appointments through the internet, she added. &ldquo;During the outages, many were unable to complete their applications on time or follow updates from embassies. As a result, some families lost important opportunities, increasing their stress and anxiety,&rdquo; Aziz said.&nbsp;Trade between Pakistan and AfghanistanBilateral trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan also suffered. The absence of internet services meant that trade processes could not be computerized, resulting in delays in the clearance of goods, particularly for traders handling perishable items. For any goods to be transported across the border, online verification by authorities is mandatory. Speaking to Pakistan TV digital, local trader Ibrahim Shinwari said, &ldquo;Since the internet was disrupted, all goods requiring verification from Afghan trading authorities couldn&rsquo;t be processed.&rdquo; Due to the disruption in internet service, former president of the Peshawar Chamber of Commerce Shahid Khan said transactions across the banking sector came to a sudden halt. &ldquo;There is still a fear among the people that if any disruption emerges again, it would further impact the already stalled bilateral trade between the two countries,&rdquo; said Khan. Communities and traders fear the uncertainty surrounding the future of internet services in Afghanistan. Any new decisions could not only disrupt bilateral trade but also deeply affect people&#39;s lives.

Afghanistan

Kabul restored internet after a two-day nationwide shutdown ordered by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada to combat “immorality,” disrupting banking, trade, and visa services, while leaving 42 million disconnected and sparking regional impacts including delays in Pakistan-Afghanistan commerce.

Articles tagged with "Blackout"

Iran warns protesters who joined 'riots' to surrender

Afghanistan restores internet after two-day nationwide blackout