Iran

Selected recounts don’t pacify protestors

Article published on the 2009-06-17 Latest update 2009-06-17 13:29 TU

The Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has given the go ahead to recount some votes.
(Photo: Reuters)

A second giant demonstration took place this week on Tuesday evening in Tehran, despite a government pledge to recount votes at some polling stations. The gathering brought together hundreds of thousands of people responding to opposition leader Mir-Hossein Moussavi’s call to continue the movement until a new election is held.

Many of the demonstraters were wearing black in memory of the seven protestors shot and killed on Monday, when the first large demonstration passed in front of a Basij (volunteer national guard) station and several people guarding the station opened fire on the crowd.

That demonstration was declared the largest peaceful demonstration in the history of the Islamic Republic on Tuesday, According to Shahab News Agency. Speaking at the rally, surrounded by former president Mohmmad Khatami and fellow candidate Mehdi Karrubi, Moussavi was defiant, and said: "We will continue our movement until the election result has been annulled and a new election is held." 

In the increasing state of unrest, the already paranoid regime has confined foreign journalists to their offices, banning them from attending the rallies. The Iranian foreign ministry accused foreign media outlets have become the "mouthpiece of rioters".

The Revolutionary Guards threatened Iran's online media on Wednesday with legal action if their sites published material that created "tension," in the latest crackdown on the media.

"We warn those who propagate riots and spread rumours that our legal action against them will cost them dearly, especially since some of the youth of this land were killed by the thugs' action, so we urge them to delete such material from their sites," a statement said.

Authorities have also been cracking down on perceived organisers of the opposition. Riot police attacked Tehran university campus on Sunday night, arresting 150 students. More than 100 organisers have been taken into custody since the weekend, according to foreign news sources, though the regime’s numbers are much smaller.

"26 main individuals behind the recent unrests along with some other elements been arrested by the Law Enforcement Forces,” said Intelligence Minister Gholam-Hossein Ezheh'I.

Text messaging services continue to be interrupted in the capital and social networking websites, like Facebook, which were unblocked during the campaigns, are now again inaccessible to Iranians.

Meanwhile, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is in Russia for a regional summit, where he has made no reference to the ongoing unrest in Iran.

The international community is staking out its loyalties with some governments congratulating Ahmadinejad and others voicing concern over the election results. Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez squarely backed Ahmadinejad Wednesday and labelled protests a foreign-backed "smear campaign."

But Germany alleges it has indications there were "irregularities" in the presidential polls, and joined France in calling for an inquiry into the vote counting.

Protests have started cropping up outside the capital, with reported gatherings in Machhad, Ispahan, Shiraz.