https://arab.news/pydej
- "Workers at a petrochemical plant at Asalouyeh organised a union meeting" on Monday morning
- The port in Bushehr province in southern Iran is home to the Islamic republic's vital South Pars gas and oil complex
TEHRAN: Iranian authorities have made a number of arrests after a union rally in a key oil-producing region, a local official was quoted as saying on Tuesday.
鈥淲orkers at a petrochemical plant at Asalouyeh organized a union meeting鈥� on Monday morning, local governor Ali Hashemi was quoted by the Fars news agency as saying.
The port in Bushehr province in southern Iran is home to the Islamic republic鈥檚 vital South Pars gas and oil complex.
鈥淯nfortunately, a number of opportunists... infiltrated鈥� the gathering and 鈥渟et fire to construction sheds and rubbish bins,鈥� Hashemi told the news agency.
鈥淲hen the security forces intervened, these people dispersed and some arrests were made,鈥� Hashemi said, without elaborating.
The official IRNA news agency denied what it called 鈥渋nformation from Persian-language media hostile to the revolution鈥� that there had been any strike by workers in the area.
It described production at the petrochemical works as 鈥渘ormal.鈥�
IRNA said 鈥渏ust a few dozen workers鈥� had protested at a plant over 鈥渘on-payment of their wages,鈥� adding that some 40,000 people work at Pars South.
The incident comes during more than three weeks of protests that erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year old Iranian of Kurdish origin, who had been arrested by Iran鈥檚 morality police for allegedly breaking the country鈥檚 strict dress code for women.