Jan. 11 (UPI) — A box truck rammed through a crowd demonstrating in support of protesters in Iran on Sunday, injuring two people, authorities said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The incident occurred at about 3:30 p.m. PST in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Uncorroborated video of the incident posted online shows a U-Haul truck driving through the crowd of seemingly hundreds of people at 1350 S. Midvale Avenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Signage seen on the side of the truck’s cargo box included the message: “No Shah. No Regime. USA: Don’t repeated 1953. No Mullah.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Los Angeles Fire Department said in a statement<\/a> that two people were injured in the incident but they declined transport to a hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The driver of the truck has been detained, the Los Angeles Police Department said<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The LAPD confirmed<\/a> that an adult male was struck by the vehicle and was treated at the scene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “This incident is being actively investigated to determine what led to the collision,” the LAPD said<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The LAFD said the crowd was “voluntarily dispersing.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, said on X that authorities were aware of the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The FBI is on the scene working with LAPD to determine the motive of the driver,” he said in the statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “This is an active investigation and we will update the public when we have more information.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n The protest was held in Los Angeles as the Iranian regime, led by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei<\/a>, has responded with escalating violence to mass protests triggered late last month over the country’s deepening economic crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to the non-governmental Human Rights Activists News Agency<\/a>, which reports on Iran, at least 544 people have been killed in the last 15 days. Iran Human Rights said the death toll could exceed 2,000, citing sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the director of IHR, said the killings of protesters “may be even more extensive than we currently imagine” due to Iran being submerged in a Internet blackout since Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The Islamic Republic is committing a major international crime against the people of Iran, and the international community is obligated, under international law, to use all available means to stop this crime,” Amiry-Moghaddam said in\u2002a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n