This archive report was first published on 4 December 2019.
On November 15, widespread protests erupted in Iran in response to a surprise decision to raise petrol prices by as much as 200 percent.
As security forces moved in to quell the unrest, buildings were torched and shops were looted, leaving many arrested and injured.
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani addressed the nation, stating, "All those people who have been arrested, of course some of them are innocent and should be freed."
He emphasized the need to differentiate between those who committed minor offenses, such as setting fire to a tyre, and those who used weapons or committed serious crimes during the violence.
"Those who are criminals must be dealt with according to the law," Rouhani said, adding that those who had been planning the violence for over two years would have their "confessions" broadcast in the future.
Iran has blamed the violence on "thugs" backed by its arch-foes the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia, as well as exiled royalists and the People's Mujahedeen of Iran (MEK), a former rebel group considered a "terrorist" cult.
Amnesty International reported that at least 208 people died during the violence, but Iran has dismissed such reports as "utter lies".
