Cologne/Düsseldorf (dpa/lnw) - Thousands of people expressed their solidarity with the protesters in Iran on Saturday in the two largest cities in North Rhine-Westphalia. In Cologne, three demonstrations began in the city center in the afternoon, including at Heumarkt and Roncalliplatz. A police spokesman said a total of 6,000 participants had been registered.
According to the police, around 1,600 instead of the original 500 people who had registered turned up alone at Roncalliplatz and joined the event at Heumarkt after they had finished their procession. The Cologne police spoke of a total of several thousand demonstrators.
In Cologne, demonstrators had, among other things, banners with the protest slogan "Woman. Life. Freedom." included. Other banners in Cologne read "Justice for Iran," "Free Iran," and "Down with the dictatorship."
In Düsseldorf, too, numerous people took to the streets to show solidarity with the protesters in Iran. After the organizer had initially registered 750 participants, around 3,000 people marched through downtown Düsseldorf on Saturday afternoon, according to the police. A police spokesman said that this elevator also went peacefully and without any special incidents.
The trigger for the mass protests in Iran in September was the death of 22-year-old Iranian Kurd Mahsa Amini. The morality police had arrested the young woman because she is said to have violated the Islamic dress code. Since her death, thousands of people across the country have been protesting against the repressive course of the local government and the Islamic system of rule. The United Nations has expressed "increasing concern" over reports of deaths in protests in Iran.
