Iran: Truckers surpass 11th day of nationwide strike

Tens of thousands of truckers on strike across Iran

 Tens of thousands of truck drivers across Iran continued a nationwide strike on Friday, marking its 11^th consecutive day.

Truck drivers in Kermanshah and nearby cities in western Iran, Mashhad, Najaf Abad, Aligudarz and many other cities continued their protests on Friday. Beginning on May 22^nd, the drivers have spread their initiative to over 280 cities despite a variety of plots launched by the Iranian regime to cause rifts among their ranks.

These measures include repressive actions aimed at breaking the drivers’ will.

In the city of Dorud, western Iran, authorities arrested numerous drivers unwilling to have their vehicles loaded with goods.

In Amir Abad, northern Iran, repressive forces arrested several drivers after attacking their protest rally site.

In Zarrin Shahr, central Iran, anti-riot units took measures to disperse the drivers and truck owners protesting in the city’s fruit terminal. The protesting drivers attacked the regime’s units and forced them to flee the scene.

In Khorramdareh, northwest Iran, state police units intended to strip the license plates of trucks belonging to protesting truckers. The drivers resisted and forced the police to retreat.

The protest drivers are demanding an increase in their delivery rates, retirement pensions after 25 years of work, their field of work classified as harsh and demanding for the drivers, decrease in insurance fees, decrease in supplementary fees including road tolls and commissions demanded by each official at numerous terminals (all without any specific framework), decrease in the price of spare parts, the resignation of the truck drivers/owners union chief, and authorities to end their repressive measures against the drivers.

As this movement spreads, taxi drivers in Kermanshah and Bukan joined the protests by launching a strike on Thursday. On Wednesday, taxi drivers in Sanandaj also went on strike and joined the ranks of their trucker colleagues.

In recent days Snap taxi drivers – an agency affiliated to the Revolutionary Guards – also went on strike in the cities of Tehran, Tabriz, Yazd, Shirvan, Isfahan, and Shiraz.