Holy cow (tip to Instapundit):
Anti-regime protesters torched around 731 banks in nationwide unrest that began two weeks ago, Iran’s top leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei admitted. The demonstrations against the Shi’a Islamic regime started on November 15 after Tehran announced the rationing of gasoline and a sharp hike in fuel prices. Protesters also turned their anger at symbols of the regime, setting fire to banners and billboards depicting Ayatollah Khamenei and Islamic propaganda.
The Reuters article cited also says that protesters attacked 50 security force "bases" and burned 70 gas stations. Although I suspect the "bases" were really "offices."
However much Iran-backed snipers have unleashed killing on Iraqi protesters, it pales in comparison to what the Iranians seem to be doing to Iranian protesters behind the shield of an Internet shutdown inside Iran (tip to Instapundit). The Iranian mullah rulers claim America and our Arab allies are behind this.
Spiegel has some eyewitness accounts--including the regime-supporter angle--introducing it so:
Thousands have been protesting against the government and revolutionary leader Ali Khamenei in dozens of Iranian cities for more than a week now. The security forces have responded with lethal force, with human rights organization Amnesty International reporting more than a hundred deaths. The announcement made on the night of Nov. 15 that gasoline would be rationed and prices would increase dramatically -- in some cases tripling -- triggered the protests. Under sanctions imposed by the United States, Iran is only able to export small amounts of oil and goods, which has created a financial and economic crisis in the country.
We should go all-in (short of military action) on backing protesters rather than wringing our hands over whether we "taint" the protesters, as so many liberals annoyingly argue. America does not "taint" freedom, and thug rulers will claim whatever they want regardless of what we do. Note that the Hong Kong protesters were thrilled with America's new law that expresses support for the protesters.
Pity we couldn't float balloons across Iran or any other thug dictatorship to reestablish Internet access to the world when a regime cuts it off in a crisis.
UPDATE: So here's what happened when Iran shut off their Internet to the outside world (tip to PJ Media):
