Iranians Protest Against Government Despite Attacks By Government Officials

From the Times Online:

Iran’s beleaguered regime struck back at the resurgent opposition yesterday, arresting several leading activists and confiscating the corpse of Mir Hossein Mousavi’s nephew to prevent his funeral becoming another massive anti-government demonstration.

The regime moved to shore up its position the day after its security forces killed at least eight protestors and wounded scores more in the most violent clashes since the immediate aftermath of June’s disputed presidential election. The opposition claimed that 550 of its supporters were arrested, though the official figure was 300.

The brutality of the security forces on the Shia religious holiday of Ashura was condemned around the world. David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, praised the courage of the protesters and called on Iran to respect the rights of its citizens. Even Russia, one of Iran’s main trading partners, called for restraint.

Those killed on Sunday included Seyed Ali Mousavi, nephew of the opposition leader, who was shot in the chest. Tehran was rife with speculation that he had been assassinated in order to send a message to his uncle, and the Government moved rapidly to prevent his death becoming another rallying point for the opposition.

On Sunday security forces ringed the hospital where his body was taken. Yesterday they used tear gas to disperse protesters who had gathered outside. Later it emerged that they had removed his body and taken it to an undisclosed location.

Iran’s state-controlled media said that the body, and those of four other people killed during Sunday’s protests, had been taken away for forensic tests. In addition it implied he may have been shot by foreign agents to embarrass the regime. A senior opposition activist told The Times: “We believe that they took the body and will bury it secretly in order to prevent a funeral and public mourning.”

At least seven opposition activists were arrested, including three of Mr Mousavi’s top aides, two advisers to the reformist former president Mohammad Khatami, and two of its most outspoken critics: Ebrahim Yazdi, who served as foreign minister in the early months of the 1979 Islamic revolution, and the human rights campaigner Emadeddin Baghi.

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said that eight people were killed on Sunday in anti-government protests across Iran that erupted during the religious festival of Ashura. Iran’s Health Ministry said that more than 60 people had been injured in Tehran, with about 300 people reportedly arrested.

A report on the website of state television put the number of dead as high as 15 and quoted the Ministry of Intelligence that more than 10 were members of "anti-revolutionary terrorist" groups.

The five others who reportedly died during the bitter clashes in the Iranian capital were killed by "terrorist groups", Iranian TV claimed.

Analysts have heralded the start of what could be a bloody endgame after hundreds of thousands of opposition supporters poured on to the streets of Tehran and other cities on Sunday and fought running battles with the security forces. Opposition websites claimed that some policemen had refused to fire on demonstrators.

The United States condemned Iran’s “unjust suppression” of civilians and said it was on the side of protesters.

Gangs of pro-government vigilantes increasingly appear to be taking the law into their own hands. On Saturday night a group broke up a meeting addressed by Mohammad Khatami, the reformist former president, and attacked nearby offices used by the family of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic. Leading members of the Khomeini family now support the opposition.

The opposition claims that the unrest is spreading across Iran, and to every social class. It senses victory, but activists fear a bloodbath first. “The security forces, especially the Revolutionary Guards, are prepared to fight until the end as they have nowhere to go,” one member said.