What's happening in Iran?
Iran's Mehr news agency said Ayatollah Khamenei, aged 80, would lead this week's Friday Muslim prayers in Tehran's Mosalla mosque, but did not link the event to the current situation. It quoted officials as saying "the Iranian nation will once again demonstrate their unity and magnificence". The last time Ayatollah Khamenei led Friday prayers in Tehran was in 2012 on the 33rd anniversary of the country's Islamic Revolution. Leading Friday prayers in the capital is a symbolically significant act usually reserved for times when Iran's highest authority wishes to deliver an important message, says Mehdi Khalaji of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Historically, Iranian leaders have left this task to loyal clerics with strong oratorical skills, he adds. News that an Iranian missile had downed the plane led to days of protests in some Iranian cities, particularly at universities where slogans were shouted calling the Revolutionary Guards murderers and liars. Social media footage from several funerals held for victims on Thursday showed mourners chanting slogans against the authorities. Iran has arrested several people over the plane crash and President Rouhani said the investigation would be overseen by a "special court", noting that "the whole world will be watching". His Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, acknowledged that Iranians had been "lied to" for days but insisted the government was also kept in the dark. The Iranian authorities have faced growing pressure on other fronts. The country's economy is struggling under crippling US sanctions and a nuclear deal it signed with world powers looks close to collapse. Last year, violent protests erupted across the country after the government unexpectedly announced it was rationing petrol and increasing its price.DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
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