Iran has arrested 14,000 people and killed at least 277 people over the past six weeks.

 

Famous historian says Iran regime knows it's sitting on top of a volcano, (West Asia News Agency/Reuters)

CNN — According to a top UN official, 14,000 people have been arrested during protests in Iran since September.

"In the past six weeks, more than 14,000 persons, including human rights defenders, students, lawyers, journalists and civil society activists, including thousands of men, women and children, have been arrested," special rapporteur Javed Rehman said on Wednesday The human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

At least 277 people have died in the country as a result of a "sustained violent response by security forces", a figure supported by reports from human rights groups.

It is impossible for anyone outside the Iranian government to confirm the exact figures – with varying estimates given by opposition groups, international rights organizations and local journalists.

So CNN does not independently confirm the arrest figures or the death toll.

"This protest is not for law reform," Roham Alvandi, associate professor of history at the London School of Economics, told CNN. "This is an insurgency demanding the end of the Islamic Republic. And it's completely different from what we've seen before."

Source : CNN