Iranian protesters reportedly shot at by security forces Sun, 02/20/2011 - 17:30 Printer-friendly version
A protester has been shot and killed at 7th Tir Square in central Tehran, according to several eyewitness reports on opposition websites. The news comes amid reports that protesters are gathering in several parts of the city, responding to the opposition’s call to rally in commemoration of the two people killed during protests last Monday.
An official of Tehran security forces has announced that reports of shootings and death in Tehran are false.
Kaleme opposition website reports that with nightfall the number of protesters is rising and the security forces are reportedly preventing people from gathering using tear gas bombs.
Iran’s official news agency, IRNA reported earlier that Faezeh Hashemi, daughter of moderate cleric, Ayatollah Rafsanjani was arrested by the security forces for participation in the protests but news of her release was soon after reported on FARS news agency.
Eyewitness reports indicated earlier that large crowds of people had gathered in major squares, moving silently without chanting any slogans, as the heavy presence of security forces is reported across the city.
In Mahabad, security forces have reportedly shot at the crowd in order to gain control over the protests.
At the same time in Mashhad, Iran’s second largest city, protesters have been reportedly attacked on the streets with clubs and sticks.
Protests have also been reported in Shiraz, Esfahan, Sanadaj, Mahabad, Rasht and other cities, according to the Rahesabz opposition website.
In the meantime, FARS news agency, which is linked to Iran’s security forces, reported that "no major unrest or demonstrations" are happening in Tehran.
Iranain oppositon issues another rally call Thu, 02/17/2011 - 17:54
Iranian opposition groups today called on people to join a rally on February 20 commemorating the seventh day of the passing of the two people killed during the protests of Bahman 25 (February 14).
The coordination council of the Green Path of Hope issued a statement on Kaleme and other opposition websites,asking people to join the rally “in firm support of the political stances of the leaders of the movement, MirHosein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, and to continue the hard path of freedom and human dignity, and also in solidarity with our Kurdish compatriots, paying respect to the spilt blood of our two beloved Iranians one Shia, the other Sunni, who died in the struggle against religious despotism.”
During Monday’s anti-government protests, Saneh Jaleh and Mohammad Mokhtari were killed by gunshots. While the government has announced that protesters were responsible for the deaths, the opposition insists both men were killed by security forces.
Meanwhile, Ghaneh Jaleh, the brother of one of the victims, has denied the government’s allegations, telling Voice of America that his brother did not belong to the state-backed Basij militia and the government has been fabricating documents to make it appear as if he did.
The new rally call comes as the two opposition leaders remain under house arrest. Today the judiciary announced the leaders will be prevented from issuing any further statements. There has been a complete news blackout around MirHosein Mousavi and his wife Zahra Rahnavard, which has worried their family.
Tags: Bahman 25 rally, Iranian opposition leaders, Iranian portests
Opposition leaders laud Iranian protests Wed, 02/16/2011 - 16:08 MirHoein Mousavi - Mehdi Karroubi
Iran’s two main opposition leaders have each managed to issue brief messages about the protests they had called for on February 14, when hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets of major cities in support of recent Arab uprisings.
Kaleme reports that MirHosein Mousavi has praised Monday’s “glorious” demonstrations as “a great achievement of the Iranian people and the Green Movement formed by people from every strata of the country and brave men and women of the society against the disbelief of pessimists and autocrats.”
The opposition leader maintains that the Bahman 25 (February 14) protests were attacked on two separate front. “First by autocrats seeking position, power and riches in the future,” Mousavi explains, and second by “foreigners” and those “trying to ride the wave in the international scene in order to secure their own interests.”
While Mousavi’s first reference appears to address the attacks from the Islamic Republic establishment and the conservative members of the parliament who called for the execution of the opposition leaders yesterday, the second reference points toward the United States, which has been expressing support for protesters and called on the Islamic Republic authorities to allow people to demonstrate in peace.
Mousavi says both groups are trying “to link the movement to Zionism, the U.S. and their lackeys.”
The opposition leader emphasized: “The great pride of the Green Movement is its complete independence and absolute reliance on the mighty force of the nation.”
He insisted that the Green Movement’s objective is to recapture the ideals of the 1979 Revolution and achieve the “demands of the freedom-seeking people.”
Mehdi Karroubi also issued a message condemning the “violent, inhumane and un-Islamic” confrontation with protesters on February 14. He urged the government to “hear the voice of the people before it is too late.”
“Release political prisoners and pull your hands off from the throat of independent media and be faithful to the covenant with your people in the name of the constitution,” Saham News quotes the opposition leaders as saying.
On February 14, Iranians staged mass demonstrations, despite heavy security measures in all major cities, in response to a rally call by Mousavi and Karroubi. The two opposition leaders were kept under house arrest and could not join the demonstrations.
At least two people were killed in clashes between security forces and demonstrators, and human rights websites reports that at least 1,500 people have been arrested.
Yesterday, a hardline MP led a group of pro-government forces calling for prosecution of the opposition leaders. Saham News reports that the crowd later approached Karroubi’s home, chanting slogans against the two leaders.
Jaras website also reports that the Basij and plainclothes forces are planning an attack on Mousavi’s home. According to Jaras, the pro-government forces say they plan to arrest Mousavi and hand him over to the judiciary.
The establishment was taken aback by Monday’s mass demonstrations, and since yesterday, Iranian state media have been overrun with programs and interviews calling for the prosecution of Mousavi and Karroubi.
President Barack Obama has again criticized Iran's government for its crackdown on opposition protesters. The president used a news conference to address ramifications for the Middle East following what happened in Egypt and Tunisia, and also responded to criticisms of the $3.73 trillion budget he sent to Congress this week.
President Obama said governments must respond peacefully to peaceful protests in the wake of the anti-government rallies in Egypt that brought down former President Hosni Mubarak and a series of protests in other countries in the region in recent days, where authorities have cracked down. Mr. Obama said people must be allowed to voice their grievances.
The president turned to Iran where the government broke up an opposition rally on Monday.
"I find it ironic that you've got the Iranian regime pretending to celebrate what happened in Egypt, when in fact, they have acted in direct contrast to what happened in Egypt by gunning down and beating people who were trying to express themselves peacefully," said Obama.
Obama reiterated that real change in societies "is not going to happen because of terrorism… or killing innocents," but by people coming together and applying moral force.
On Iran, Obama said he was clear after mass demonstrations following Iran's elections in 2009, and is clear now, that people should be able to express grievances and seek a more responsive government.
Saying America cannot "ultimately dictate," but can lend moral support, he said the U.S. is concerned about stability in the region, but sends a consistent message.
"The message that we have sent, even before the demonstrations in Egypt, has been to friend and foe alike, that the world is changing, that you have a young, vibrant generation within the Middle East, that is looking for greater opportunity and that if you are governing these countries, you have got to get out ahead of change, you can't be behind the curve," added Obama.
Iran confirms arrest of 1500 protesters Tue, 02/15/2011 - 15:04
The Iranian judiciary today announced the names of 1,500 people arrested in yesterday’s demonstrations and transferred to Evin Prison, the Human Rights Reporters Committee reports.
Families of detainees gathered in front of the Revoutionary court, where the detainees' files were being initiated, but they were attacked by Special Guards of the security forces and dispersed.
The authorities are refusing to inform families about what’s happening to individual detainees.
The announcement of the 1,500 names comes after security commander Ahmadreza Radan confirmed to the media that 150 people had been arrested. He said the protests had been carried out by a handful of seditionists.
Gholamhosein Mohseni Ejei, a spokesman for the judiciary and Iran’s prosecutor, told Fars news agency that yesterday’s events were “designed and supported by the U.S. and anti-Revolutionaries including the monafeghin.”
Iranian authorities refer to the dissident political group People Mojahedin Organization as monafeghin.
“In view of earlier warnings,” Mohseni Ejei said, “the judiciary will deal quickly and firmly with the main perpetrators and those who disturbed public order and peace.”
Yesterday Iranians took to the streets of Tehran and major cities in response to an opposition rally call. The mass demonstrations confirmed that post-election spirit of protest remains strong.
Tags: Bahman 25 rally, Iranian political prisoners
Two Iranians killed in Monday's protests Tue, 02/15/2011 - 20:29
Iran announced that one of the people injured in Monday's protests has died bringing the number of people killed in the Febraury 14 protests to two.
Mehr news agency identified the victim as Mohammad Mokhtari who reportedly died due to "severe injuries sustained" in yesterday's events.
The other victim was identified earlier as Saneh Jaleh, a student at Tehran Art University. Jaleh was reportedly shot on the streets during the protests.
Fars News Agency identified Jaleh as a member of the Basij militia and the authorities are accusing the People's Mojahedin Organization, the exiled dissident group, of perpetrating the violence.
People's Mojahedin, whcih the Islamic Republic refers to as "monafeghin", has denied the allegations according to Associated Press and called the report a lie.
At the same time, opposition website, Saham News has published a picture of Saneh Jaleh visiting the dissident cleric and outspoken critic of the Islamic Republic establishment, Ayatollah Montazeri along with a group of students.
Basij official, Hadi Ghassemi told Fars News Agency that they are planning a funeral service for "Martyr Saneh Jaleh, Tehran Art University student who was shot by the terrorist organization monafeghin." The service he added would be held tomorrow at 9:30 am in front of the Art University moving towards Tehran University.
Iranian opposition groups have announced that they will not allow the Basij to hold Saneh Jaleh's funeral since contrary to the claims of the state, the opposition insists that Jaleh supported the Green Movement of reform.
Ardeshir Amirarjmand, MirHosein Mousavi's aide has called for an independent truth-finding committee to investigate yesterday's events.
The opposition figure told Kaleme website: "There is no doubt that the victims of the events were injured by security and plain clothes forces."
Yesterday Iranian protesters took to the streets of Tehran in response to a rally call from MirHosein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi to march in support of the recent Arab uprisings. The opposition leaders were held under house arrest and not allowed to join the rally.
The protests became deadly once security forces clashed with protesters.
Tags: Bahman 25 rally, Basij, Green Movement, Iranian opposition leaders
Iranian protesters try to bypass heavy security deployment Mon, 02/14/2011 - 16:15
Iranian security forces have been deployed throughout Tehran in response to the rally call issued by the opposition leaders MirHosein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi.
Reuters reports that security forces can be seen at all major arteries of the city. They have blocked the entrance to the subway along Valiasr Street, the main thoroughfare that runs north-south through the heart of the city.
The subway obstructions seem aimed at preventing people from getting to Imam Hossein Square, the march’s starting point.
Several eyewitnesses have reported that tear gas bombs are being used to scatter people and impede large gatherings.
Kaleme website says several thousand people have gathered in Engelab Square, and at the time of that report, the security forces had not confronted the crowds with any violence.
An eyewitness told Zamaneh that a gathering of about 5,000 people at Jamalzadeh Street was attacked by riot police, but no arrests were reported.
While official reports indicate that Mousavi’s home is under strict security with all communication cut off, Al-Arabiah earlier reported that Mousavi and his wife Zahra Rahnavard have joined the protesters.
State news agencies have completely ignored the thousands of people responding to the opposition’s call to rally.
Iranians brave the streets despite heavy security Mon, 02/14/2011 - 17:29 Printer-friendly version
Eyewitness reports given to Zamaneh indicate that large buses with drawn curtains are parked around Valiasr Square, a central thoroughfare in Tehran, and security forces are brandishing clubs and batons to intimidate Iranain protesters who have braved the streets despite heavy security deployment all across Tehran.
Various reports indicate Iranians from across the city have been trying to get to the proposed starting point of the rally called by opposition leaders MirHosein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi. With subways blocked and security forces heavily deployed on major streets, it has become difficult and hazardous for protesters to gather as planned.
At 18:25 local time, eyewitnesses told Zamaneh security forces are carrying unusually heavy weaponry around Abbasabad Street. Reports also indicate that at Azadi Square, where the march was supposed to end, dozens of black police vehicles have been stationed, and the police are reportedly confiscating mobile phones as soon as people are seen using them.
While froreign media has been banned from covering the events, reports of the protests are only getting through social media and eyewitnesses despite restrictions set against internet and mobile phone services.
Eyewitness reports to Reuters indicate sporadic clashes in Tehran’s Engelab Square between security forces and opposition protesters. Demonstrators are said to have been chanting “Death to the Dictator!” referring to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the hardline president who was re-elected in 2009 amidst allegations of vote fraud, triggering mass protests.
AFP and CNN have reported thousands of protesters on the streets, and BBC quotes eyewitnesses who report that drivers and motorcyclists are giving free lifts to protesters.
Protests have also been reported in other major cities including Tabriz, Shiraz, Esfahan, Ahavaz, Rasht and Kermanshah.
After Islamic Republic authorities crushed the 2009 street protests with fierce violence and systematic arrest of protesters and reformists figures, the opposition leaders refrained from rallying supporters to avoid bloodshed.
Today's rally, called by Mousavi and Karroubi in support of the recent Arab uprisings which the state has announced support for, will test the opposition's ability to engage in street protests as well as the state's willingness to persist in violent confrontations with the people.
Life After Divorce By David Wygant 1-17-2011 After my divorce, I remember my buddy Rich and I went out to a bar. I was standing in that bar drinking a margarita, and all of a sudden I realized I was "him." I was that older guy in a bar full of 20-somethings, nursing a drink and looking at women. At that moment I realized that those days were over for me.
Do you want to be 'that guy?' I never wanted to be that guy standing in a bar. There wasn't any joy anymore being in a bar. I wanted to meet real women.
I didn't want to get involved in idle chit-chat about nothing, meet somebody when they were drunk, call them the next day and have to remind them of the conversation we had. I was past that point in my life. I wanted to meet someone real.
So let's talk about what to do after you get divorced. The first thing you need to do is make sure you clear your mind. Don't go out and start trying to meet women just because your wife has left you (or because you left your wife).
Spend some time with yourself. Get to know yourself again.
Start to think about what YOU really want. What are you looking for in life? With what type of woman do you want to spend your time? What did you learn from your last relationship?
Think about how you feel right now. Are you happy? Are you sad?
Spend time by yourself. Take some time to hang out with friends and get to know them again. Spend some time doing "guy things." Enjoy yourself and don't even think about women.
Once you've done this, then the next step is to actually go out there and start meeting women doing things that you enjoy. You don't want to be that guy standing in the corner of a bar or nightclub wondering if you're going to meet women.
Instead, think about what you like to do. Make a list of five things that you really enjoy doing -- five things that are really important to you and five places you'd like to really be seen.
I remember doing this exact exercise when I was 35 years old. I found that I really enjoyed meeting women when I was "out and about."
I enjoyed meeting women in supermarkets because I always had something to talk about with them (since food is a passion of mine). I enjoyed meeting women at coffee shops because I enjoy drinking a cup of tea. I really enjoyed meeting women when I was working out. I enjoyed meeting women when I was at the movies if I was able to talk to them before the movie or after the movie.
I wanted to meet women who shared the same interests as me. I wanted to meet a woman who was really like me -- someone who likes to travel, eat great food and stay healthy.
That's important. You want to really start figuring out who you are and what you're all about. That way, when you are out meeting people you won't make the same mistakes.
In all my years of coaching men in dating and relationships, I've found that men who jump back into the dating world too soon after a breakup or a divorce tend to find the same woman over and over again (and tend to marry the same woman again). They do it because that same woman is what they are used to.
So learn from your experience and from your last relationship. Embrace all the lessons from that relationship so that you can go out and find what you really want. You deserve it. Whether your last relationship ended because she left you or you left her, you deserve to be able to get back out there and find what you want.
The Foot Steps Of Water Life's a pleasant tradition. Life's wing is as vast as death. Life's a jump the size of love. Life's not something, we put on the mantel of habit and forget.
Paintings by: Sohrab Sepehri It does not matter where I am. The sky is always mine. Windows, ideas, air, love, earth, all mine. Why does it matter if sometimes, the mushrooms of nostalgia grow?
Let's take off our clothes. Water is just a foot away. Let's have a basket and fill it up with all the greens and all the reds.
We are not to comprehend; the secret of roses, but maybe swimming in the incantation of roses. Or may be looking for the song of truth between the morning glory, and the century.
rainbird Forum Posts (16)
Tunisia, Egypt, Which is the next? Iran?
Iranian protesters reportedly shot at by security forcesSun, 02/20/2011 - 17:30
Printer-friendly version
A protester has been shot and killed at 7th Tir Square in central Tehran, according to several eyewitness reports on opposition websites. The news comes amid reports that protesters are gathering in several parts of the city, responding to the opposition’s call to rally in commemoration of the two people killed during protests last Monday.
An official of Tehran security forces has announced that reports of shootings and death in Tehran are false.
Kaleme opposition website reports that with nightfall the number of protesters is rising and the security forces are reportedly preventing people from gathering using tear gas bombs.
Iran’s official news agency, IRNA reported earlier that Faezeh Hashemi, daughter of moderate cleric, Ayatollah Rafsanjani was arrested by the security forces for participation in the protests but news of her release was soon after reported on FARS news agency.
Eyewitness reports indicated earlier that large crowds of people had gathered in major squares, moving silently without chanting any slogans, as the heavy presence of security forces is reported across the city.
In Mahabad, security forces have reportedly shot at the crowd in order to gain control over the protests.
At the same time in Mashhad, Iran’s second largest city, protesters have been reportedly attacked on the streets with clubs and sticks.
Protests have also been reported in Shiraz, Esfahan, Sanadaj, Mahabad, Rasht and other cities, according to the Rahesabz opposition website.
In the meantime, FARS news agency, which is linked to Iran’s security forces, reported that "no major unrest or demonstrations" are happening in Tehran.
Tags: Iranian anti-government protests