NUR
2009-08-07 03:51:24 UTC
http://iran.whyweprotest.net/green-brief/27319-green-brief-49-50-august-4-5-mordad-13-14-a.html
I'm NiteOwl AKA Josh Shahryar - twitter.com/iran_translator on
twitter. I'm a journalist and a human rights activist and NOT Iranian.
This is a compilation of news from Iran that I've gathered through
twitter and Iranian sites that were advertised on twitter. Remember,
this is all from tweets. (My work is released under Creative Commons
(CC).)
These are the important happenings that I can positively confirm from
Wednesday and Thursday, August 4,5 - Mordad 13,14.
In Italian: http://tinyurl.com/ngghjz
Protest / Unrest
1. A protest is scheduled for today – August 6 - at Vanak Square and
Valiasr Square. Should be underway by the time this Brief is out.
Protests are also planned for Mashhad – at Malikabard Blvd - and other
cities – but confirmation for cities other than Mashhad is not
available.
August 5
2. Mass protests were held in Tehran on August 5. The main location
was at Baharestan Square, close to the parliament, 1,500 to 2,000
people gathered and chanted against the regime. Thousands gathered at
other locations in the city, mainly the Bazaar, Vanak Square,
Mirdamad, Yosufabad and Sa’aie Park. Baharestan was important both to
the government and the protesters as that is where Ahmadinejad was
being sworn in. Thousands of protestors were marching on the streets.
Partially confirmed reports suggest that the bazaar was almost
paralyzed by the crowd.
3. Thousands of security forces were employed, effectively blocking
the parliament from outside access. It has been confirmed that
Ahmadinejad flew in by helicopter to avoid the protesters. Helicopters
flew overhead in many parts of central Tehran. Security forces were so
numerous, that in some areas, they outnumbered protesters.
4. Protesters were again badly beaten during clashes in many parts of
the city. Partially confirmed reports also indicated that tear gas was
used to disperse protesters in some locations. Subway stations,
including the one close to Baharestan, were closed by the police to
stop protesters from getting into central Tehran.
5. At least 20 people were arrested according to confirmed sources.
Dozens more were also reportedly arrested – but confirmation has not
been reliable. It was, however, confirmed that a high school near
Baharestan was converted into a temporary holding place for arrested
protesters, until they could be moved to detention centers/prisons
elsewhere. Reportedly, the number of people arrested may be very
high.
6. Detainees’ families also gathered in front of Evin Prison today.
7. Cell phone service was cut off throughout central Tehran, once
again.
8. There were also reports of a smaller protest in Sari.
Opposition
August 4
9. Ayatollah Montazeri released a statement denouncing the
government’s obtaining confessions from prisoners and called them
illegal and a major sin.
10. Karroubi released a statement saying that both he and Mousavi
would continue their protests over the rigged elections.
August 5
11. Mousavi, Rahnavard, Mirdamadi, Nabavi and Ramezanzadeh’s Facebook
accounts were attacked today and were inaccessible at the time of the
writing of this Brief.
12. Mousavi stated today, that the government thought it could quell
the people’s demands by arresting reformist leaders and calling them
leaders of a ‘velvet revolution’ but protesters have shown that
people’s demands were not tied to individuals. He added that the
arrests were not going to stop the political movement.
13. IIPF released a statement today calling the government illegal.
The statement also asserted that the government had no longer remained
true to the constitution and was not democratic.
14. Ayatollah Sane’ie and Ayatollah Zanjani joined Ayatollah Montazeri
in calling the government’s confession program illegal and sinful.
Sane’ie went as far as saying that those who were forcing prisoners to
confess would soon see the results of their traitorous actions.
15. Ayatollah Moaghegh-Damad sent a letter to Judiciary Chief Shahrodi
and literally blasted him for his conduct. Excerpts from his statement
are here: Legal Scholar Blasts Judiciary Chief – Tehran Bureau
16. It is unclear whether Hashemi Rafsanjani will be leading Friday
prayers this week, even though it is his turn to do so.
Arrested / Released / Killed
August 4
17. Mir hamid Hassanzadeh – the owner of Ghalam, a website that has
gained a reputation as Mousavi’s semi-official page online – has been
arrested and his computer together with other equipment was
confiscated. Hassanzadeh is also the head of Mousavi campaign’s media
outreach program.
18 Khomeini’s granddaughter asked the government to reveal the names
of detainees so their release could be pursued through legal means by
their families. Full story: Khomeini’s granddaughter speaks out –
Tehran Bureau
19 Hoshang Baba’ie, the legal counsel of Tajzadeh, Nabavi and
Mirdamadi, told ILNA that he would not be attending court on Saturday
as the trial was illegal.
August 5
20. Shocking news of Alireza, a 12 year old boy killed at Beheste
Zahra, last Thursday, has now been confirmed. He had accompanied his
father to the mourning for Neda and the other protestors at the
cemetery. He was killed by the security forces after being hit on the
head with a baton. His body was returned to his family four days after
he was killed. (I have withheld publication of his death since Monday
because I wanted full confirmation of this very serious incident.)
There are reports of a parliamentary investigation into the
circumstances of his death.
21. The body of an unnamed protester was returned to his family 20
days after his disappearance. His heart and kidneys were missing and
stitches could be seen on his abdomen. His badly bruised body also
lacked finger nails.
22. Mahdi Yazdani Khorram, an editor at Etemaade Melli newspaper, has
been arrested. Reza Nourbakhsh – the chief editor of Farhikhtegan
newspaper – also arrested, his equipment was ceased and his office was
searched thoroughly. Fereydoon Amozadeh – the chief editor of
Chilcheragh Weekly – arrested.
23. Ali Vaghefi, the head of Mousavi campaign’s students’ division in
Tehran, was released on bail. Also released was Mehadi Hashemi’s
wife.
24. The second session of reformists’ trial in Tehran has been
postponed to Saturday.
25. The office of the Association of Iranian Journalists has been
sealed by agents of the Judiciary. The office has been sealed by the
order of Mortazavi. The association was supposed to be holding a
meeting on Friday.
Government / International
August 4
26. Iran’s National Security Council has announced that the people in
charge of Kahrizak, would be fired and prosecuted, if charges of
misconduct are proven against them after investigations were done.
(Take them to Evin, give them psychoactive drugs, rip their nails and
lash them with different types of electrical cables and they’ll
readily confess. You don’t need an investigation.)
27. In an open letter, 44 Nobel laureates have condemned the human
rights violations in Iran.
August 5
28. Ahmadinejad’s inauguration ceremony was held in the Iranian
parliament with the absence of prominent reformists and Khamenei. Only
Shahroudi was present as the highest ranking government official.
Several embassies sent low-ranking officials rather than ambassadors
to attend the ceremony. (The names of these embassies will be released
as soon as I have confirmation. Count on it!)
29. Other people present were; Mohmmadi Golpaygani, Samara Hashemi,
Sardar Jafari, Rahim Masha’ie and Mohseni Ejaie. Absentees including
all reformist directly tied to the Green Movement, Ayatollah Yazdi,
Ahmad Khatami – both staunch Ahmadinejad supporters - Ali Akbar Nategh
Noori, former speaker of the house, Mohsen Reza’ie, a conservative and
a candidate in the elections for president and Mohammad Baqer
Ghalibaf, Tehran’s mayor. Even though the government had invited over
250 people besides the MPs, many seats were empty. Foreign media was
barred from the event.
30. Dozens of reformist MPs walked out as Ahmadinejad started his
speech. Ahmadinejad did not say a word regarding the protests and
simply continued to call his ‘selection’ historic.
31. So far, the governments of France, Great Britain, the US and
Belgium have declined to congratulate Ahmadinejad on his historic
‘selection’ as Iran’s president. In a separate statement, EU
spokesperson Amadeu Altafaj made it clear that the EU was not going to
send a letter either.
32. The Norwegian government summoned the Iranian charge d'affaires to
protest human rights violations and imprisonment of opposition
politicians.
Miscellaneous
33. The first game of Iran’s Premier League will be held without
spectators on Friday for fear of Green Movement participation.
To Helpers
- Anonymous - the collective that organizes and runs this forum -
needs donations to keep the servers running. They only need about
22,500
Cents a month to make this possible. If you do want to make a
donation, please chip in your pennies here for the month of August:
General Expense - Why We Protest
- Info on republishing the Green Brief: For Bloggers, News Sites and
Forum who want to republish the Green Brief Plesae Read! - Why We
Protest - IRAN
- Information on Tor: Tor Browser Bundle
- Discuss/Annotate: http://aic.openmsl.net/wiki/index.php/Green_Brief_48
; Create it if it doesn't exist.
- (A list of all the Green Briefs: http://ded1.hybrid-optix.com/greenbriefs.html[/url]
- A hearty thanks to Sahar joon and S joon for helping me out with
proof-reading and very valuable tips. Also, a BIG THANKS to all the
translators who're spending their precious time on getting this to as
many people as possible.
I'm NiteOwl AKA Josh Shahryar - twitter.com/iran_translator on
twitter. I'm a journalist and a human rights activist and NOT Iranian.
This is a compilation of news from Iran that I've gathered through
twitter and Iranian sites that were advertised on twitter. Remember,
this is all from tweets. (My work is released under Creative Commons
(CC).)
These are the important happenings that I can positively confirm from
Wednesday and Thursday, August 4,5 - Mordad 13,14.
In Italian: http://tinyurl.com/ngghjz
Protest / Unrest
1. A protest is scheduled for today – August 6 - at Vanak Square and
Valiasr Square. Should be underway by the time this Brief is out.
Protests are also planned for Mashhad – at Malikabard Blvd - and other
cities – but confirmation for cities other than Mashhad is not
available.
August 5
2. Mass protests were held in Tehran on August 5. The main location
was at Baharestan Square, close to the parliament, 1,500 to 2,000
people gathered and chanted against the regime. Thousands gathered at
other locations in the city, mainly the Bazaar, Vanak Square,
Mirdamad, Yosufabad and Sa’aie Park. Baharestan was important both to
the government and the protesters as that is where Ahmadinejad was
being sworn in. Thousands of protestors were marching on the streets.
Partially confirmed reports suggest that the bazaar was almost
paralyzed by the crowd.
3. Thousands of security forces were employed, effectively blocking
the parliament from outside access. It has been confirmed that
Ahmadinejad flew in by helicopter to avoid the protesters. Helicopters
flew overhead in many parts of central Tehran. Security forces were so
numerous, that in some areas, they outnumbered protesters.
4. Protesters were again badly beaten during clashes in many parts of
the city. Partially confirmed reports also indicated that tear gas was
used to disperse protesters in some locations. Subway stations,
including the one close to Baharestan, were closed by the police to
stop protesters from getting into central Tehran.
5. At least 20 people were arrested according to confirmed sources.
Dozens more were also reportedly arrested – but confirmation has not
been reliable. It was, however, confirmed that a high school near
Baharestan was converted into a temporary holding place for arrested
protesters, until they could be moved to detention centers/prisons
elsewhere. Reportedly, the number of people arrested may be very
high.
6. Detainees’ families also gathered in front of Evin Prison today.
7. Cell phone service was cut off throughout central Tehran, once
again.
8. There were also reports of a smaller protest in Sari.
Opposition
August 4
9. Ayatollah Montazeri released a statement denouncing the
government’s obtaining confessions from prisoners and called them
illegal and a major sin.
10. Karroubi released a statement saying that both he and Mousavi
would continue their protests over the rigged elections.
August 5
11. Mousavi, Rahnavard, Mirdamadi, Nabavi and Ramezanzadeh’s Facebook
accounts were attacked today and were inaccessible at the time of the
writing of this Brief.
12. Mousavi stated today, that the government thought it could quell
the people’s demands by arresting reformist leaders and calling them
leaders of a ‘velvet revolution’ but protesters have shown that
people’s demands were not tied to individuals. He added that the
arrests were not going to stop the political movement.
13. IIPF released a statement today calling the government illegal.
The statement also asserted that the government had no longer remained
true to the constitution and was not democratic.
14. Ayatollah Sane’ie and Ayatollah Zanjani joined Ayatollah Montazeri
in calling the government’s confession program illegal and sinful.
Sane’ie went as far as saying that those who were forcing prisoners to
confess would soon see the results of their traitorous actions.
15. Ayatollah Moaghegh-Damad sent a letter to Judiciary Chief Shahrodi
and literally blasted him for his conduct. Excerpts from his statement
are here: Legal Scholar Blasts Judiciary Chief – Tehran Bureau
16. It is unclear whether Hashemi Rafsanjani will be leading Friday
prayers this week, even though it is his turn to do so.
Arrested / Released / Killed
August 4
17. Mir hamid Hassanzadeh – the owner of Ghalam, a website that has
gained a reputation as Mousavi’s semi-official page online – has been
arrested and his computer together with other equipment was
confiscated. Hassanzadeh is also the head of Mousavi campaign’s media
outreach program.
18 Khomeini’s granddaughter asked the government to reveal the names
of detainees so their release could be pursued through legal means by
their families. Full story: Khomeini’s granddaughter speaks out –
Tehran Bureau
19 Hoshang Baba’ie, the legal counsel of Tajzadeh, Nabavi and
Mirdamadi, told ILNA that he would not be attending court on Saturday
as the trial was illegal.
August 5
20. Shocking news of Alireza, a 12 year old boy killed at Beheste
Zahra, last Thursday, has now been confirmed. He had accompanied his
father to the mourning for Neda and the other protestors at the
cemetery. He was killed by the security forces after being hit on the
head with a baton. His body was returned to his family four days after
he was killed. (I have withheld publication of his death since Monday
because I wanted full confirmation of this very serious incident.)
There are reports of a parliamentary investigation into the
circumstances of his death.
21. The body of an unnamed protester was returned to his family 20
days after his disappearance. His heart and kidneys were missing and
stitches could be seen on his abdomen. His badly bruised body also
lacked finger nails.
22. Mahdi Yazdani Khorram, an editor at Etemaade Melli newspaper, has
been arrested. Reza Nourbakhsh – the chief editor of Farhikhtegan
newspaper – also arrested, his equipment was ceased and his office was
searched thoroughly. Fereydoon Amozadeh – the chief editor of
Chilcheragh Weekly – arrested.
23. Ali Vaghefi, the head of Mousavi campaign’s students’ division in
Tehran, was released on bail. Also released was Mehadi Hashemi’s
wife.
24. The second session of reformists’ trial in Tehran has been
postponed to Saturday.
25. The office of the Association of Iranian Journalists has been
sealed by agents of the Judiciary. The office has been sealed by the
order of Mortazavi. The association was supposed to be holding a
meeting on Friday.
Government / International
August 4
26. Iran’s National Security Council has announced that the people in
charge of Kahrizak, would be fired and prosecuted, if charges of
misconduct are proven against them after investigations were done.
(Take them to Evin, give them psychoactive drugs, rip their nails and
lash them with different types of electrical cables and they’ll
readily confess. You don’t need an investigation.)
27. In an open letter, 44 Nobel laureates have condemned the human
rights violations in Iran.
August 5
28. Ahmadinejad’s inauguration ceremony was held in the Iranian
parliament with the absence of prominent reformists and Khamenei. Only
Shahroudi was present as the highest ranking government official.
Several embassies sent low-ranking officials rather than ambassadors
to attend the ceremony. (The names of these embassies will be released
as soon as I have confirmation. Count on it!)
29. Other people present were; Mohmmadi Golpaygani, Samara Hashemi,
Sardar Jafari, Rahim Masha’ie and Mohseni Ejaie. Absentees including
all reformist directly tied to the Green Movement, Ayatollah Yazdi,
Ahmad Khatami – both staunch Ahmadinejad supporters - Ali Akbar Nategh
Noori, former speaker of the house, Mohsen Reza’ie, a conservative and
a candidate in the elections for president and Mohammad Baqer
Ghalibaf, Tehran’s mayor. Even though the government had invited over
250 people besides the MPs, many seats were empty. Foreign media was
barred from the event.
30. Dozens of reformist MPs walked out as Ahmadinejad started his
speech. Ahmadinejad did not say a word regarding the protests and
simply continued to call his ‘selection’ historic.
31. So far, the governments of France, Great Britain, the US and
Belgium have declined to congratulate Ahmadinejad on his historic
‘selection’ as Iran’s president. In a separate statement, EU
spokesperson Amadeu Altafaj made it clear that the EU was not going to
send a letter either.
32. The Norwegian government summoned the Iranian charge d'affaires to
protest human rights violations and imprisonment of opposition
politicians.
Miscellaneous
33. The first game of Iran’s Premier League will be held without
spectators on Friday for fear of Green Movement participation.
To Helpers
- Anonymous - the collective that organizes and runs this forum -
needs donations to keep the servers running. They only need about
22,500
Cents a month to make this possible. If you do want to make a
donation, please chip in your pennies here for the month of August:
General Expense - Why We Protest
- Info on republishing the Green Brief: For Bloggers, News Sites and
Forum who want to republish the Green Brief Plesae Read! - Why We
Protest - IRAN
- Information on Tor: Tor Browser Bundle
- Discuss/Annotate: http://aic.openmsl.net/wiki/index.php/Green_Brief_48
; Create it if it doesn't exist.
- (A list of all the Green Briefs: http://ded1.hybrid-optix.com/greenbriefs.html[/url]
- A hearty thanks to Sahar joon and S joon for helping me out with
proof-reading and very valuable tips. Also, a BIG THANKS to all the
translators who're spending their precious time on getting this to as
many people as possible.