The police commander of West Azerbaijan announced that 22 main instigators of the ethnic unrest in Urmia have been arrested.
Rahim Janbakhsh, the police commander of West Azerbaijan, reported the identification and arrest of 22 main individuals who, according to him, intended to spread hate and incite ethnic unrest.
Mr. Janbakhsh stated that during the mourning ceremony for Imam Ali, certain separatist movements attempted to misuse the event by calling for gatherings.
This year’s Persian New Year celebrations coincide with the month of Ramadan and its related events.
In Urmia, as in many other Iranian cities, groups including Kurdish citizens celebrated joyfully while mourning processions were held for the first Imam of the Shia, with thousands participating in the Saturday mourning event.
Meanwhile, some viewed this traditional mourning, held annually, as conflicting with the celebrations and attributed it to clashes between Kurds and Turks, while others saw it as a usual event like every year, although the presence of security forces at the Saturday gathering was notable.