Canadian demonstrators form 'human chain' in solidarity with Iran protesters

Thousands of demonstrators lined the streets of Canadian cities from St. John's to Vancouver as part of a worldwide "human chain" to show solidarity with ongoing anti-government protests in Iran.

In Toronto, stretches of Yonge Street were flanked by crowds chanting "women, life, freedom" and "say her name: Mahsa Amini," who died on Sept. 16 after being detained for allegedly violating the country's strict Islamic dress code for women.

At a midtown intersection, cars blared their horns as they passed by demonstrators holding pictures of loved ones who were among the victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752. On Jan. 8, 2020, 176 people, including 55 Canadian citizens, were killed when Iran's Revolutionary Guard shot down the Ukrainian airliner.

The events were organized by the Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims.

Arash Morattab, who lost his brother and sister-in-law in the crash, said the victims of Flight 752 have common cause with the protest movement that has rocked Iran for nearly a month and a half in the face of harsh backlash from security forces.

"We are all victims of a regime that started killing people from the first days of them coming into power, and this keeps going until now," said Morattab. "They killed our beloved ones in January 2020, and now they kill other people that fight for their rights."

The fight for justice is particularly resonant for women in Iran who continue to be denied freedom, said protester Sara Ahmadi. She said she ran into problems with the regime because she wasn't legally married to her common-law partner, who was killed in the plane crash.

"Women don't have any rights in my country," Ahmadi said. "It's not just about the hijab. It's about everything."

Further north on Yonge Street, protesters chanted, "Hey, hey, ho, ho, Islamic regime must go" and "What solution? Revolution" while drivers leaned on their horns in solidarity.

"It's unbelievable," said Mehrdokht Hadi, one of the organizers of the Toronto event. "Two months ago I couldn't imagine this crowd on the streets, now people are not scared and people are motivated."

The protests in Iran sparked by Amini's death first focused on the state-mandated hijab, or head scarf for women, but quickly grew into calls for the downfall of the country's theocracy.

At least 270 people have been killed and 14,000 have been arrested in the protests that have swept over 125 Iranian cities, according to the group Human Rights Activists in Iran.

The Iranian government has repeatedly alleged that foreign powers have orchestrated the protests, but have not provided evidence to support the claim.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke at the protest in Ottawa, where several hundred people gathered outside the National Gallery of Canada before moving to stretch along both sides of the Alexandra Bridge.