Iran Opposition Calls National Strike -Farnaz Fassihi
The three top leaders of Iran's opposition joined forces and their supporters began a three-day national strike, signaling a resurrection of protests.
Opposition candidates Mir Hossein Mousavi [pictured] and Mehdi Karroubi, joined by former President Mohamad Khatami, met to plot strategy and issued their first-ever joint statement, calling for an end to government arrests and "savage, shocking attacks" on their advisers and supporters.
The opposition has also called for other creative forms of civil disobedience. Protesters have been asked to create a[n] electrical blackout in Tehran by plugging in all their household electric appliances at exactly the same time, and to spray green paint on walls in their neighborhood.
Simultaneously, Iran's government announced an unexpected public holiday for 48 hours due to emergency levels of pollution, attempt[ing] to mask the impact of the public strikes.
(Wall Street Journal)
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UPDATES:
Protesters Clash with Police in Tehran -Thomas Erdbrink
Thousands of anti-government demonstrators were attacked with batons and tear gas by security forces Thursday near Tehran University as they defied warnings from the authorities that they would crush any demonstrations. Plainclothes security personnel shoved people into unmarked vans with blacked-out windows.
In one incident, a student named Hadi said in a telephone interview, "robocop-style policemen attacked a group of people. The crowd ran off, only to be blocked by a group of Basijis [pro-government militia]. Instead of turning away from them, the crowd actually charged the Basijis and started fighting and beating them up."
(Washington Post)
Current Protests Involve a Broad Coalition -Christa Case Bryant
Iran expert Robin Wright, a public policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, notes that the protest movement is driven by a diverse coalition including two former presidents, a former prime minister, the Islamic world's most politically active women, ethnic minorities, sanctions-strapped businessmen, taxi drivers, famous filmmakers, and members of the national soccer team.
(Christian Science Monitor)
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The three top leaders of Iran's opposition joined forces and their supporters began a three-day national strike, signaling a resurrection of protests.
Opposition candidates Mir Hossein Mousavi [pictured] and Mehdi Karroubi, joined by former President Mohamad Khatami, met to plot strategy and issued their first-ever joint statement, calling for an end to government arrests and "savage, shocking attacks" on their advisers and supporters.
The opposition has also called for other creative forms of civil disobedience. Protesters have been asked to create a[n] electrical blackout in Tehran by plugging in all their household electric appliances at exactly the same time, and to spray green paint on walls in their neighborhood.
Simultaneously, Iran's government announced an unexpected public holiday for 48 hours due to emergency levels of pollution, attempt[ing] to mask the impact of the public strikes.
(Wall Street Journal)
*
UPDATES:
Protesters Clash with Police in Tehran -Thomas Erdbrink
Thousands of anti-government demonstrators were attacked with batons and tear gas by security forces Thursday near Tehran University as they defied warnings from the authorities that they would crush any demonstrations. Plainclothes security personnel shoved people into unmarked vans with blacked-out windows.
In one incident, a student named Hadi said in a telephone interview, "robocop-style policemen attacked a group of people. The crowd ran off, only to be blocked by a group of Basijis [pro-government militia]. Instead of turning away from them, the crowd actually charged the Basijis and started fighting and beating them up."
(Washington Post)
Current Protests Involve a Broad Coalition -Christa Case Bryant
Iran expert Robin Wright, a public policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, notes that the protest movement is driven by a diverse coalition including two former presidents, a former prime minister, the Islamic world's most politically active women, ethnic minorities, sanctions-strapped businessmen, taxi drivers, famous filmmakers, and members of the national soccer team.
(Christian Science Monitor)
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