海角大神

Iranian shops in Tehran鈥檚 historic Grand Bazaar and elsewhere across the country closed their doors Tuesday amid protests gripping the nation, as two prominent soccer stars also announced they would not be attending the upcoming World Cup over the demonstrations.

The shop closures came amid calls for a three-day national strike to mark earlier protests in 2019 against Iran鈥檚 theocracy that ended in a violent crackdown by authorities. However, this round of demonstrations after the September death of a 22-year-old woman earlier detained by the country鈥檚 morality police have continued despite activists recording at least 344 deaths and 15,820 arrests so far.

Iran鈥檚 Revolutionary Court has sentenced an anti-government protester to death, and handed down jail terms to five others, state media said Sunday, amid persistent unrest in the country.

The ruling likely marks the first death sentence in the trials of those arrested for participating in protests that have swept Iran over the past weeks demanding an end to clerical rule.聽Shortly after the ruling, a false claim that Iran intends to execute 15,000 people went viral on social media,聽NBC News聽reported. Even though the rumor was amplified by major public leaders and celebrities, the claim is not true, NBC reported.聽

On Tuesday, shuttered storefronts could be seen across Tehran, Iran鈥檚 capital.聽In the Grand Bazaar, the beating heart of Tehran for hundreds of years that long has served as a political bellwether for Persian dynasties, store fronts were closed as a lone woman and a man pushing a cart walked among its narrow alleyways. A stray cat nibbled at trash down one of its silent warrens.

Videos taken earlier Tuesday showed crowds gathered outside of the closed shops, some shouting: 鈥淭his year is a year of blood; Seyyed Ali will be toppled!鈥� The chant, heard in other protests, refuses to use the title ayatollah to refer to Iran鈥檚 Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. An ayatollah is a high-ranking Shiite cleric and such calls targeting Mr. Khamenei can bring a death sentence in Iran鈥檚 closed-door Revolutionary Courts.

Other online videos purported to show shops closed elsewhere in the country as well, with some scattered demonstrations taking place.

Like the other protests after the Sept. 16 death of Mahsa Amini, the demonstrations appeared largely leaderless. A call on social media had gone out demanding a national strike not to buy or sell anything to mark the 2019 protests in Iran that followed a hike in government-subsidized gasoline prices that activists say saw at least 321 people killed in a subsequent crackdown.

Strikes may increasingly put pressure on the Iranian government, which so far has dismissed the demonstrators鈥� demands as a foreign plot by its enemies as opposed to an outpouring of public frustration.

Already, U.S. officials have said they received information from Saudi Arabia saying an attack by Iran on the kingdom may happen. The U.S. Navy said Tuesday it intercepted 70 tons of a missile fuel component on a ship heading from Iran to Yemen, where the country鈥檚 Houthi rebels have repeatedly targeted Saudi Arabia with ballistic missile fire.

Widening the demonstrations into strikes and boycotts could further raise pressure on Iran鈥檚 government, which already has seen its economy suffer under international sanctions after the collapse of its nuclear deal with world powers. So far though, it has yet to affect production in its crucial oil and natural gas industry.

The U.N. human rights office separately called on Iran鈥檚 government to immediately release thousands of people who have been detained for participating in peaceful protests.

Iran鈥檚 theocracy has been trying to solidify its support amid the demonstrations, holding rallies to mark the Nov. 4, 1979, takeover and subsequent hostage crisis at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.

It鈥檚 also focused on Iran鈥檚 upcoming appearance at the World Cup in Qatar. A prominent billboard in Tehran鈥檚 Vali Asr Square typically used by hard-liners shows Iran鈥檚 team heading into a match, apparently supported by warriors of its Persian past.

But two prominent former stars have said they won鈥檛 go to the matches in Qatar. Ali Daei, a top international goal scorer and Iranian team captain, said he declined to go when his country was 鈥済rief-stricken.鈥�

鈥淚 want to be with my compatriots and express sympathy with all those who have lost loved ones,鈥� the former center-forward said.

Javad Nekounam, another star, similarly has declined to go to the World Cup, Iran鈥檚 semiofficial ISNA news agency reported.

This story was reported by The Associated Press.