Nationwide uprising – Statement 140
NCRI – At 10:00 am local time, Streets of 17 Shahrivar and Baharestan as well as Baharestan Square where the Majlis (mullahs’ parliament) is located, was under siege by the Revolutionary Guards. Demonstrators who could not get to Baharestan Square by metro, as it was closed, they used Enghelab, Vali Asr and Jomhouri streets to get there. On their way they clashed with security forces where some of them were badly beaten. The number of paramilitary Bassij force and the Revolutionary Guards were ten times the agents of the State Security Forces (SSF).
At 11:30, people gathered outside Sepahsalar Mosque and streets around it. They were about 700-800 but the suppressive forces did not allow a demonstration to take shape. The forces attacked women protestors who were trying to organize the crowd. They were beaten and some taken to Ettehad high school for girls near Majlis where the agents concentrated. The agents took away mobile phones and cameras from the demonstrators.
Demonstrators chanted slogans against people who were getting off buses carrying foreign diplomats and representatives of foreign countries to attend the inauguration ceremony at the parliament. Demonstrators were protesting against participation in a ceremony which defied people’s sovereignty. The suppressive forces brutally attacked the protestors after the buses left the area.
The suppressive forces used tear gas and pepper gas in their attacks against the crowd to disperse them at Zahiroleslam junction toward Mohkberoddoleh, Sarcheshmeh junction, Seyyed Khandan and Mirdamad streets.
In Vanak Square, north of Tehran, a large number of security forces prevented people from crossing the main square and only allowed taxis and public transport vehicles to go through. The SSF agents dealt harshly with drivers honking their horns. The shop keepers around Vanak Square were also forced to close so that people could not gather in the area using the pretext of shopping. People in the area were forced into side streets in order to prevent them from going into main streets.
In a message today, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the Iranian Resistance, said that the velayat-e faqih system (absolute rule of clergy) had no legitimacy or a future and the rift within the regime was deepening. She added that the uprising continues and the suppressive machinery including Kangaroo trials, ridiculous shows and taking forced confessions under torture is not going to be able to save the regime.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
August 5, 2009
