KHAMENEI

Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said 17 new petrochemical plants are planned to be inaugurated across the country during the current Iranian calendar year (ends on March 20, 2021), Tasnim news agency reported.

Speaking in a meeting of the surge in production headquarters on Wednesday, Zanganeh noted that the implementation of the new projects is going to bring the country $6 million of revenues every year.

According to Amnesty International, at least 106 people have been killed in 21 cities of Iran in a brutal crackdown on the protests, which take place already several days.

Referring to “unofficial news reports from various sources”, the BBC reports that some 200 people have been killed in the country in the last five days and three thousand have been injured.

Iran's supreme leader backed Sunday a government decision to increase fuel prices which sparked deadly protests over the weekend.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei blamed "thugs" for damaging property in protests that left at least two people dead. His comments come as the government shut off internet across Iran in an attempt to quell protests over the raising of government-set gasoline prices by 50%.