Monday, June 22, 2009

It’s right to protest over lies and fraud, Mousavi tells his bloodied followers

The Times Online/UK, June 22, 2009

Security personnel gather in a Tehran street in a picture uploaded on Twitter

A picture uploaded on Twitter shows security forces gathering during a march in Tehran

Martin Fletcher

Iran’s opposition leader appealed for restraint as his supporters regrouped after Saturday’s bloody confrontations with the security forces.

Mir Hossein Mousavi, defeated in a presidential election that his followers say was rigged, issued a statement mourning those killed, denouncing the “mass arrests” and insisting: “Protesting against lies and fraud is your right.”

Bursts of gunfire were reported as Tehranis took to their rooftops to shout protests under cover of darkness, but for the first time in a week there were no big demonstrations. That was partly because Tehran’s streets were flooded with police and Basiji militiamen, and partly because the protesters were still reeling from the previous day’s brutality.

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