The Washington Post
Opposition Protesters Clash With Riot Police in Tehran
Mousavi Vows Political Uprising Will Continue, Says He Is 'Ready for Martyrdom'
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Saturday, June 20, 2009; 5:08 PM
TEHRAN, June 20 -- Security forces blocked downtown streets Saturday and used tear gas, water cannons, batons and gunfire to break up a demonstration against the reelection of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as his chief political opponent called for a national strike in the event of his arrest and said he was prepared to sacrifice his life for his cause.
Mir Hossein Mousavi, who charges that he was cheated of victory in the June 12 presidential election, told supporters in southwestern Tehran that he was "ready for martyrdom" and vowed to continue his protest movement despite a warning from Iran's supreme leader Friday against further demonstrations.
Mousavi called on Iranians to stage a national strike if he is arrested, a tactic that was used effectively three decades ago by the movement that ultimately deposed the shah of Iran and ushered in an Islamic revolutionary government.
As darkness fell on Tehran, people took to their rooftops to shout slogans against the government for the second straight night in another tactic that recalled the revolutionary movement.
Earlier, demonstrators gathered near the scene of planned opposition rally in defiance of a warning by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, according to witnesses. The protesters chanted slogans such as "Death to the dictator!" and "Allahu Akbar!" (God is great) before police fired tear gas and water cannons to break up the gathering near Revolution Square. News services estimated the crowd at about 3,000.
The number of casualties from running street clashes between security forces and protesters was not immediately clear. Security forces were seen firing warning shots into the air, but there were also unconfirmed reports that several people were hit by gunfire.
One witness said he saw the bodies of two men and a woman lying in Azadi Street at around 6:30 p.m. People loaded them into vans.
Residents of the area described firefights after protesters had stolen weapons from security forces. They also said a mosque was set on fire by people they described as "hooligans." Other witnesses said they saw people being shot.
The Associated Press, quoting witnesses, said dozens of people were hurt and that gunfire was heard.
The agency reported that 50 to 60 protesters were seriously beaten by police and militiamen and taken to a hospital in central Tehran. Demonstrators could be seen dragging away comrades bloodied by baton strikes, AP said.
Iran's official Press TV, an English-language version of state television, reported "sporadic clashes . . . between security forces and the protesters."
The acting police chief, Brig. Gen. Ahmad-Reza Radan, said the protests were illegal and that police would deal with them "firmly and with determination." He warned that "those who provoke street protests . . . will be arrested and prosecuted."
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Members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard Corps, riot police in full gear and members of the pro-government Basij militia were deployed in force to try to keep protesters from gathering or to corral them in side streets and alleys so they could not get to the square, the main starting point of the planned rally.
In a separate development, state-run news media reported that a suicide bomber blew himself up near a shrine to the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the father of Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution. State-run news media said the blast killed the bomber and injured three other people.
Witnesses said police appeared to have a difficult time controlling the protesters, who support Mousavi's demand for a new election.
Mousavi renewed his demand Saturday, presenting what he said was new evidence of electoral fraud.
Many of the riot police moved around on motorcycles in their efforts to head off marchers. A number of Shiite Muslim clerics joined the protesters and were trying to lead them to Revolution Square, the witnesses said.
The Iranian government has prohibited foreign reporters from covering the protests.
Women pleaded with security forces to stop fighting the people, witnesses said. Some of the women chanted, "Help us, security force," as the police pushed protesters back.
Security forces used the Labor Ministry as a base from which they drove motorcycles toward demonstrators, witnesses reported. Teargas was used to disperse crowds, which were significantly smaller than in previous demonstrations. Police blocked off several main roads leading to Azadi (Freedom) Street, where protesters had planned to gather.
As water cannons blasted the Mousavi supporters on Azadi Street, fighting erupted in nearby alleys. Dumpsters were set on fire and used as a barricade between youths and security forces, who pelted each other with stones.
In one back alley, a middle-aged man held up a police baton that he said he had taken from security forces. Farther down the same road, a member of the Revolutionary Guards, dressed in a black overall and helmet, fired several rounds into the air with an assault rifle, witnesses said.
Large plumes of smoke filled the sky as the sun was setting. Local youths said a gasoline station had been burned.
In an interview on state television, a top police official, Brig. Gen. Esmail Ahmadi-Moqaddam, said his troops were preventing pro-Mousavi demonstrators from gathering in central Tehran. "People are tired," he said. "They want to run their business. People want to come to the streets, to travel, to fly somewhere, to go to hospital, but they are stuck in traffic for hours and their rights are denied. This process is boring, disturbing and unbearable."
Members of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard Corps, riot police in full gear and members of the pro-government Basij militia were deployed in force to try to keep protesters from gathering or to corral them in side streets and alleys so they could not get to the square, the main starting point of the planned rally.