A new wave of popular protests has begun in Iran as the top commander of IRGC admitted that their anti-aircraft missile had brought down the Ukrainian plane. The Iranian government has responded as always with brutal use of force. Live rounds have been shot at the protesters; hundreds were injured, and the families of the victims were threatened not to talk to journalists, or they won’t be getting their loved ones’ bodies. There are countless misunderstandings about what has been happening in Iran over the past few years, and there are major misrepresentations about what has happened in the last few months. What are the processes of silencing and indirect censorship that have led to such misrepresentations?
The main misrepresented fact is that the current protests are not just about the public outrage over the downing of the Ukrainian plane, nor are they distinguishable from the protests of November 2019 or December 2017.
"Our enemy is right here". This slogan was at the heart of the protests that swept across Iran as it had resonated in the streets for the last few years. Yet it has been rarely echoed in the western mainstream media.
