Authorities have blamed Kurdish opposition groups for inciting the unrest following the death of Mahsa Amini, but academics say this is a false accusation and the protests involve every part of Iranian society.
Meanwhile, Iranian state media have called the nationwide protests a"political plot" ignited by Kurdish separatist groups, particularly the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran ."For the government it's useful to say this is Kurdish separatists," Iranian academic Yassamine Mather says.
"On the contrary they seem to emphasise their part in a larger Iran, like they call on people in Baluchestan, in Tehran, in Azerbaijan to support them."The protesters see themselves as part of a much bigger Iran protest," the Oxford University scholar added.Will Iran lift its headscarf ban?Samira, 42, is a mother of two teenage boys and lives in Sanandaj city, the regional capital of the Kurdistan region in northwestern Iran.
She added:"We as Kurds want our human rights and have no interest in separating Kurdistan from Iran - in contrast to what the government is promoting."But the fact that a Kurdish girl was killed, but the whole of Iran rose up, shows that we as Iranians from any background or tribes are not separate, and we support each other," she said.
"Conversely, the Iranian state attempts to rally a weary population around an ideology that denies that ingrained diversity."
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