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Hundreds of Swiss demonstrate against Iranian repression

Female protestor in Bern holds up a sign saying Peace for Iran, Peace for the world.
Several Swiss cities saw protests of the death of Iranian Mahsa Amini in police custody. © Keystone / Michael Buholzer

More than 1,000 people have taken to the streets in Switzerland to protest the death of a young woman in Iranian police custody last month.

Some 200 people gathered outside the Iranian embassy in Bern calling for the removal of the Islamic government they accuse of brutally oppressing the Iranian population.

Police had to fire rubbet bullets to disperse the Bern rally when protesters broke through a cordon. Two people were arrested after gaining entrance to the Iranian embassy grounds and taking a flag.

The protests centre around 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, a Kurdistan Iranian who was arrested by Iranian police, apparently for failing to wear a head scarf. She later died in police custody, sparking mass protests in Iran against police brutality.

Those protests have spread to several other countries around the world to show solidarity for the Iranian population.

Around a thousand people, joined by local politicians, demonstrated in Zurich on Saturday and a further rally is planned in Geneva during the evening.

Demonstrations this weekend follow a string of other protests around Switzerland during the week.

Protests, particularly from the Kurdistan community, continued in Tehran and other Iranian cities on Saturday, which were mirrored by demonstrations in European cities such as London and Paris, Reuters reports.

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