Mohammad Bagheri, the Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces, has continued regime criticism of Israel's reprisal attacks in Gaza after its proxy Hamas declared war on the Jewish state on October 7.
In a phone call with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, General Bagheri said, "We are profoundly concerned about the continuation of widespread and brutal crises against civilians. Such ruthless behavior is intolerable, and independent governments should react seriously to it."
Defense Minister Shoygu underscored Russia's stance on the need for a ceasefire and the protection of civilian lives in the region, IRNA state news agency reported.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also expressed concerns about the Gaza conflict potentially spreading into a regional crisis, according to Interfax news agency. He also described attempts to blame fellow sanctioned nation and war ally Iran for the crisis as provocations.
The comments come as regime officials in the political and military domains continue to fan the flames of unrest, threatening to activate its proxies on Israel's borders.
Just days ago, the semi-official Fars news agency reported Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian warning, "If the Zionist aggressions do not stop, the hands of all parties in the region are on the trigger".
Iran provides financial support and weapons to groups such as Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist organization by both the United States and the European Union. Iran also supports Hezbollah, a Lebanese militia group known for its periodic confrontations with Israel, situated on its northern border.
Iran has claimed that any Israeli reprisal attacks, which have resulted in casualties in Gaza, will be met with a response from what Iran refers to as the "axis of resistance." The coalition includes anti-Israeli and anti-Western groups in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen.
“Death to Khamenei”, and “Death to the perpetrator of this crime!”, chanted participants. Videos posted on social media also show many women not wearing the compulsory hijab and people chanting “Woman, Life, Freedom”, the signature slogan of last year’s nationwide anti-government protests.
Many Iranians believe the ruthless stabbing of the renowned filmmaker and his wife Vahideh Mohammadifar at their country home in Karaj Saturday evening strongly suggests state-sponsored murders similar to the chain murders of intellectuals in the late 1990s for which intelligence ministry agents were eventually found responsible.
Asked by reporters after a cabinet meeting Wednesday, Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi accused the opposition of making these allegations to “instill insecurity in the society.”
Several of Mehrjui’s cinema colleagues and his daughter delivered brief speeches at the funeral ceremony outside Roudaki (Vahdat) Hall, a performing arts complex in central Tehran, attended by hundreds of artists and others.
“I feel like mom and dad are holding my shoulders and telling me to stand strong. As daddy said, murderers are really among us,” Mona, the couple’s young daughter who had defiantly attended the ceremony without headscarf, told the mourners.
Mona was referring to a short video of her parents speaking in a dark room in a hushed, dramatic tone. “Long live freedom!” her mother says in the video clip and her father picks up from there. “Long live Freedom! Murderers are among us… We must be vigilant!” It is not clear in what context and when the scene was filmed.
The revered eighty-three-year-old director refrained from engaging in politics for many years. However, over the past year, he subtly expressed support for the ongoing Woman, Life, Freedom anti-regime movement. This support is speculated to be a possible reason for him being targeted by the state, according to some allegations.
Participants also expressed their disapproval by booing writer and actor Marzieh Boroumand who leads Khaneh Cinema, the largest association of filmmakers and actors in Iran, of which Mehrjui was also a member. This disapproval came during her speech when she referred to Israel as the Zionist regime.
Addressing the authorities, Boroumand said cinema people would fight alongside them with “Israel, the Zionist regime” if they were treated better.
Tehran’s support for Hamas and other militant organizations in the Middle East has led many Iranians to adopt a contrasting stance, favoring Israel in its military actions and condemning Hamas as the party that started the recent war in Gaza.
Police has so far twice refuted news of arrests reported by the media. Photos of the murder scene published by the media show grave negligence in securing the crime scene including by police officials who are seen walking around and giving interviews in the rooms where the murders took place without taking any precautions not to contaminate the scene.
The details of the fatal stabbing of Mehrjui and his wife evoke the state murders of dissident politician Dariush Forouhar and his wife Parvaneh Eskandari in November 1998 for many Iranians.
Naser Zarafshan who represented the families of some of the victims of the notorious chain murders in late 90s, including the Forouhars, has also highlighted that the similarities between the two double murders are striking. Those responsible for these murders sought leaving a striking mark rather than just killing a person, Zarafshan said while expressing concern over a cover up.
In a commentary published by the reformist Etemad newspaper on Tuesday, another prominent lawyer, Kambiz Nowrouzi argued that the manner of the killings which he said were very “theatrical,” and the fact that not much seems to have been stolen from the house, strongly suggest that the couple were killed to “terrify others, or even the whole society”.