US President Joe Biden said Friday he was “stunned” by the mass protests in Iran, which has seen its biggest wave of demonstrations in years after the death of a young woman arrested by morality police.
“I want you to know that we stand with the citizens, the brave women of Iran,” he said at a college in Irvine, California, addressing a group of protesters who had gathered holding “Free Iran” signs.
“It stunned me what it awakened in Iran. It awakened something that I don’t think will be quieted for a long, long time,” said Biden.
The protests were sparked by the September 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.
More than 100 people have been killed since, according to Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights.