Will Iran's hardline crackdown quash protests?

STORY: Anger is mounting in Iran as its government shows no sign of reversing its deadly crackdown.

This video on social media is said to show people rallying outside a prison in Karaj, after Iran's judiciary sentenced three more protesters to death this week.

The mother of one of those protesters is seen in this clip saying that her son is innocent - and that his case is an injustice.

So far at least four people have been hanged since anti-government demonstrations began in September.

The U.N. human rights chief called them 'state sanctioned killings' - saying that the death penalty was being weaponized by Iran’s government to strike fear into the population.

Ravina Shamdasani is the spokeswoman for the office.

“Four individuals engaged in the recent demonstrations have been executed over the past month following expedited trials that have not met minimum guarantees of fair trial and due process required by international human rights law. International human rights law is binding on Iran and this makes the executions tantamount to an arbitrary deprivation of life.”

Experts who spoke to Reuters argue the crackdown is merely pushing dissent underground, while deepening the anger felt by ordinary Iranians about the clerical establishment that has ruled them for four decades.

Alex Vatanka is the director of the Iran program at the Middle East Institute:

"I think they’re doing it for one simple reason; this is all they know what to do - using suppression and other sort of tactics aimed at intimidating and deterring protesters. And frankly it has worked in the past if you look at just recent years, we’ve had plenty of protests in just the last five or so years. The trouble is the masses are getting bigger and the anger in Iranian society is not going anywhere."

Protests have slowed considerably since the hangings began.

But analysts say the revolutionary spirit that managed to take root across the country may survive the crackdown, not least because the protesters’ grievances remain unaddressed.

Vatanka points to reasons like Iran’s deteriorating economy and its fearless young population that wants “big political change".

The demonstrations were first triggered by the death of Iranian-Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, who died in the custody of morality police.

There are no signs that President Ebrahim Raisi or other leaders are trying to come up with fresh policies to try and win over the public.

Instead, their attention appears to be fixed on security.

Reuters could not reach officials at Raisi's office for comment.