The Islamic republic has seen waves of protests since the September 16 death in custody of Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd who had been arrested for allegedly violating the country's strict dress code for women.Hundreds of people have been killed and thousands arrested in the unrest, leading to international condemnation, sanctions and Iran's removal Wednesday from a UN women's rights body.Sistan-Baluchistan, which lies on Iran's southeastern border with Afghanistan and Pakistan, had been the site of often deadly violence even before nationwide protests erupted.The largely peaceful demonstrations sparked by Amini's death have been met with a crackdown by the Iranian security forces that has killed at least 458 protesters, according a toll issued on December 7 by the Norway-based IHR.EU sanctionsUltraconservative cleric Ahmad Khatami lashed out at the European Union on Friday after the bloc slapped him with sanctions over what it called "repression against protesters"."