[Today’s Prayer] Iranian students take to the streets again… rekindling protests a month after a bloody crackdown.

Anti-government protests that had been suppressed by the government's bloody suppression are reigniting in Iran, with student protests resuming with the start of the new semester.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and AFP on the 21st (local time), on the first day of the new semester, rallies, marches, and sit-ins were held on campuses of major universities in Tehran to commemorate the victims of the protests and condemn the security forces.

At the prestigious Sharif University of Technology, student protesters chanted slogans criticizing Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.

The protests escalated into violence, with students clashing with Basij militiamen outside the campus. The Basij militia, a paramilitary force controlled by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, had been deployed to suppress anti-government protests last month.

Iran's semi-official Fars news agency reported that scuffles between the two sides resulted in injuries.

Anti-government voices are also being raised at memorial services for the victims of the protests.

Iran's memorial services, usually held 40 days after a death, are solemn religious ceremonies, but mourners visiting victims of the protests are taking a new form of protest by dancing and singing around their graves.

In the village of Lapmejan in Gilan province, a crowd gathered outside a mosque to pay tribute to a young man who died during a protest, chanting, "If one person dies, a thousand will stand behind him."

The protests, which have been rekindled on college campuses and elsewhere, are an extension of the large-scale anti-government movement that began in December last year to protest the prolonged economic crisis.

The protests reached their peak around the 8th and 9th of last month, but then subsided after security forces violently suppressed the protests, killing thousands and arresting tens of thousands.

Iranian authorities have said that around 3,000 people have died in the crackdown, but the US-based Human Rights Activists Network (HRANA) estimates that the death toll is more than 7,000 and that more than 50,000 people have been arrested.

Tensions are rising further as internal discontent within Iran erupts amid growing military pressure from the United States.

The United States, which supported the protesters, has warned that it will respond militarily if nuclear talks with Iran fail, and is increasing pressure by deploying additional aircraft carriers and fighter jets to the Middle East.

Source: Yonhap News

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh: Because of my mighty hand he will let them go; because of my mighty hand he will drive them out of his country.” (Exodus 6:1)

We hear that Iran's anti-government protests, which had been suppressed by the Iranian government's bloody crackdown last month, are reigniting as university students protest at the start of the new semester, leading to violent clashes.

Moreover, at memorial services for young people who died participating in the protests, mourners chanted, “If one person dies, a thousand will stand behind them,” as anti-government voices erupted. Lord, protect the Iranian souls who risk their lives to speak out for Iran.

Lord, You hear the cries of the blood of young people as they risk their lives and take to the streets for Iran. Now, rule over Iran with Your justice. Use the young generation of Iran to save the nation with the spirit of Esther, who declared, “If I perish, I perish.” Make them a generation that saves the nations.

By the hand of the Lord, may the falsehoods of Iran's Islamic leaders be exposed one by one, and may we see the kingdom of God come among the Iranian people. May those who have ruled Iran in God's way, including the Supreme Leader of Islam, step down, and may rulers who truly seek Iran's good and fear God be established.

Just as the people of Israel escaped from Pharaoh and left Egypt, lead the souls of Iran to escape from the false truths of Islam and come to the true truth. In times of difficulty, may the church in Iran press on with greater zeal in proclaiming the gospel and advancing with increased strength in declaring the truth. May the global church's prayers for peace through Jesus Christ be answered in Iran, and may a new chapter be written in its history.

Therefore, may the Iranian people march toward the Lord's return, risking their lives for Jesus Christ and the Gospel!