‘If they shut down the internet, you know it’s serious,’ said a well-informed observer of Iran to me yesterday morning. The internet blackout came yesterday afternoon – along with over a million Iranians marching in streets across the country. Strikes are continuing in bazaars and the cries for the end of the Islamic Republic are becoming more brazen.

A video was sent to me before the blackout from Iran’s upscale northern suburbs, home to the sons and daughters of the regime elites, in which the cries of ‘death to the dictator’ could be heard loud and clear. ‘We are excited,’ was the caption to the video. And this morning there came unconfirmed reports that the National Bank of Iran had implemented a ban on people withdrawing cash, a potentially huge moment in events. With the internet blackout still in force across the country, however, it is difficult to contact people and put a number on the protestors or verify the videos somehow making it out. What is clear, though, is that the unrest is spreading.

The Islamic Republic’s elites remain united behind........

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