Mass rally supports the leaders of Iran
Source: Agencies |
December 31, 2009, Thursday
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TENS of thousands of government supporters rallied in cities across Iran yesterday swearing allegiance to the clerical establishment and accusing opposition leaders of causing unrest in the Islamic state.
Iran's police chief warned supporters of opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi only to expect harsh treatment if they joined illegal anti-government rallies, three days after eight protesters were killed in demonstrations.
Tens of thousands took part in the government-organized demonstrations, which state television broadcast live, chanting slogans against the opposition leaders Mousavi and moderate defeated presidential candidate Mehdi Karoubi.
"You should repent ... otherwise the system will confront you as a 'mohareb' (enemy of God)," cleric Ahmad Alamolhoda told reformist leaders at a Tehran rally, state TV reported. Under Iran's Islamic sharia law the sentence for a mohareb is death.
In Tehran, crowds burned American and British flags. There was no word about any opposition supporters on the streets, despite talk of demonstrations on reformist Websites. Foreign media are restricted from moving around to report on such protests which are illegal.
In Iran's bloodiest unrest since the aftermath of the disputed June 12 presidential election, eight people were killed on Sunday and at least 20 pro-reform figures, including three senior advisers to Mousavi, were arrested.
Raising the stakes further, a representative of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that opposition leaders were "enemies of God."
Television footage of the rallies in various cities showed people chanting "Mousavi is responsible for bloodshed ... We support our Supreme Leader". Some carried pictures of Khamenei. Similar rallies occurred on Tuesday.
Since the deadly weekend clashes during the Shiite Muslim religious ritual of Ashura, political turmoil has entered a new phase in Iran with the clerical establishment piling pressure on the reform movement to end street protests.
"People want the leaders of sedition to be punished. We will not remain silent over insulting the religion," one speaker said.
Iran's police chief warned supporters of opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi only to expect harsh treatment if they joined illegal anti-government rallies, three days after eight protesters were killed in demonstrations.
Tens of thousands took part in the government-organized demonstrations, which state television broadcast live, chanting slogans against the opposition leaders Mousavi and moderate defeated presidential candidate Mehdi Karoubi.
"You should repent ... otherwise the system will confront you as a 'mohareb' (enemy of God)," cleric Ahmad Alamolhoda told reformist leaders at a Tehran rally, state TV reported. Under Iran's Islamic sharia law the sentence for a mohareb is death.
In Tehran, crowds burned American and British flags. There was no word about any opposition supporters on the streets, despite talk of demonstrations on reformist Websites. Foreign media are restricted from moving around to report on such protests which are illegal.
In Iran's bloodiest unrest since the aftermath of the disputed June 12 presidential election, eight people were killed on Sunday and at least 20 pro-reform figures, including three senior advisers to Mousavi, were arrested.
Raising the stakes further, a representative of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that opposition leaders were "enemies of God."
Television footage of the rallies in various cities showed people chanting "Mousavi is responsible for bloodshed ... We support our Supreme Leader". Some carried pictures of Khamenei. Similar rallies occurred on Tuesday.
Since the deadly weekend clashes during the Shiite Muslim religious ritual of Ashura, political turmoil has entered a new phase in Iran with the clerical establishment piling pressure on the reform movement to end street protests.
"People want the leaders of sedition to be punished. We will not remain silent over insulting the religion," one speaker said.
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