The Iranian state commemorated the 32nd anniversary of its Islamic Revolution on Friday with victory parades, as it tried to squelch counter demonstrations planned across the country for Monday.
Hundreds of thousands observe the 32nd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, while the establishment puts pressure on the country's opposition. Video courtesy of Reuters.
Iran's pro-democracy Green Movement has called people to the streets in solidarity with protestors in Egypt and Tunisia, as the call gained momentum on blogs and social networking sites, with over 30,000 people pledging to participate on one protest group's Facebook page.
Iranian youth activists got a nod from Wael Ghonim, the Google executive and Egyptian protest leader, who showed up on Tahrir Square wearing the signature green wrist band of Iran's opposition.
"I tell all Iranians that you should learn from Egyptians because we learned from you," Mr. Ghonim told an Iranian human rights group on Thursday. His comments and picture were widely posted on opposition websites and blogs.
In Tehran and other big Iranian cities this week residents scribbled on paper money, "End executions, stop dictatorship," and spray painted "Tahrir Square"—the central location of recent Egyptian protests—on traffic signs on Tehran's Azadi square, the site of Iran's anti-government protests in 2009.
Word of the Monday protests spread in buses and taxes, and one Tehran resident said neighbors buzzed each other's doorbells to tip them off.
"We called for a demonstration to show our movement is alive and to stop the Iranian government's propaganda abuse of pro-democracy movements in the region," said opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi through an intermediary.
Iran Girds for Anti-State Protests - WSJ.com
Hundreds of thousands observe the 32nd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, while the establishment puts pressure on the country's opposition. Video courtesy of Reuters.
Iran's pro-democracy Green Movement has called people to the streets in solidarity with protestors in Egypt and Tunisia, as the call gained momentum on blogs and social networking sites, with over 30,000 people pledging to participate on one protest group's Facebook page.
Iranian youth activists got a nod from Wael Ghonim, the Google executive and Egyptian protest leader, who showed up on Tahrir Square wearing the signature green wrist band of Iran's opposition.
"I tell all Iranians that you should learn from Egyptians because we learned from you," Mr. Ghonim told an Iranian human rights group on Thursday. His comments and picture were widely posted on opposition websites and blogs.
In Tehran and other big Iranian cities this week residents scribbled on paper money, "End executions, stop dictatorship," and spray painted "Tahrir Square"—the central location of recent Egyptian protests—on traffic signs on Tehran's Azadi square, the site of Iran's anti-government protests in 2009.
Word of the Monday protests spread in buses and taxes, and one Tehran resident said neighbors buzzed each other's doorbells to tip them off.
"We called for a demonstration to show our movement is alive and to stop the Iranian government's propaganda abuse of pro-democracy movements in the region," said opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi through an intermediary.
Iran Girds for Anti-State Protests - WSJ.com
