Iran rejects UN rights chief’s ‘accusations’ over water protests

Tehran (HRNW) Iran on Saturday rejected “false accusations” by the UN rights chief on protests over water shortages in the country’s southwest, where at least four people have been killed since last week.

Khuzestan, Iran’s main oil-producing region and the wealthiest of the country’s 31 provinces, has been gripped by drought since March, with protests erupting in several towns and cities since July 15.

Iranian media and officials have said at least three people have been killed, including a police officer and a protester, accusing “opportunists” and “rioters” of shooting at demonstrators and security forces.

State television said a fourth person was killed on Thursday and two wounded during “rioting” in the western province of Lorestan, where it said people had taken to the streets “on the pretext of the water problems in Khuzestan”.