Moussavi condemns violent methods used against Iranian protesters

Tehran - The leader of Iran's opposition Green Movement, Mir-Hossein Moussavi, on Tuesday condemned the violent methods used against Iranian protesters. "This method of provoking people in using violence against others (protesters) recalls the methods used during the monarchy era," Moussavi said an interview with opposition website Kalameh.

"As before the 1979 revolution, also today the roots of dictatorship can be witnessed," the former Iranian premier said on the occasion of the 31st anniversary of the revolution.

He deplored the characterization of protesters exercising their constitutional rights as "weeds and goats," as President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had reportedly said.

The opposition has staged large protests against the president and accused him of fraud in last June's presidential election which gave Ahmadinejad a second term.

Ahmadinejad had also compared the demonstrators to football hooligans whose favorite team has lost in an important match.

Together with ex-presidents Mohammad Khatami and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and former parliament speaker Mehdi Karroubi, Moussavi forms the opposition leadership quartet against Ahmadinejad.

According to opposition websites, Khatami also accused the government of perpetrating what he called "blind violence."

"This kind of blind violence will have unclear consequences," Khatami warned in a meeting Monday with reformist officials.

He was referring to two protesters, allegedly from monarchist groups, who were hanged last week and nine others sentenced to death for their involvement in the protests and alleged plans to topple the Islamic establishment.

"The correct reply to protests should not be suppression, jail and executions but allowing the people the legal right to say what they want," he was quoted as saying.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/307079,moussavi-condemns-violent-methods-used-against-iranian-protestors.html.

Mousavi: Enemies behind scientist's assassination

Former Iranian presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi says Iran's enemies are behind the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Masoud Ali-Mohammadi.

"The depressing martyrdom of the renowned physicist and Tehran University academic, Massoud Ali-Mohammadi signifies this harsh reality that the enemies of Iran are set to take advantage of today's critical situation to pursue their own interests," said Mousavi.

"This criminal action is definitely a part of a huge plan that obliges all of us, irrespective of our political tendencies, to give it some thought to discover its other aspects," he added.

Iran's former prime minister sent his condolences to the Iranian nation, the academics and the family of the slain scientist.

Massoud Ali-Mohammadi was killed on Tuesday, January 12, after a booby-trapped motorcycle blasted near his home.

Iran's Foreign Ministry has announced that it has found traces of US and Israeli involvement in the assassination of the Iranian nuclear physics scientist.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=116270§ionid=351020101.

Police say Mousavi nephew assassinated

Tehran's police say the nephew of former Iranian prime minister Mir-Hossein Mousavi was not involved in the Ashura unrests in Tehran and was the target of a drive-by shooting.

"Seyyed Ali Habibi Mousavi Khamene, without being present in the riots, was assassinated by assailants driving a vehicle in one of Tehran's side streets known as Shademan," a police statement read.

"The killing took place somewhere between 12 to 1 pm (local time) and the victim was pronounced dead before reaching hospital due to severe blood loss," it continued.

The statement adds that the case and the possible assassins are still under investigation.

Tehran's police had previously described the killing as “suspicious” as police officers were not carrying firearms on Sunday which was marred by clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces.

Protesters took to some central and downtown streets in Tehran on Sunday, during ceremonies commemorating the 7th century death of Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) grandson, Imam Hussein (PBUH).

The protesters reportedly chanted slogans against top Iranian government officials. Police used tear gas to disperse protesters.

Seven people were confirmed dead during the unrest.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=114894§ionid=351020101.

Mousavi claims reform movement is alive, despite clerical pressure

Iran’s opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi said yesterday through his website that the reform movement was alive, despite pressure from the clerical establishment, which was suppressing students.

Mr Mousavi’s remarks, which came a day before Iran’s commemoration of the killing of three students in 1953 under the former shah, may encourage his supporters to hijack the state-organized rallies to revive anti-government protests.

“Let’s say you suppressed students and silenced them. What will you do with the social realities?”, Mr Mousavi’s Kaleme website quoted him as saying, in a clear reference to widescale arrests of students in Tehran and other cities in the past few days.

“You [the authorities] do not tolerate the student day rallies. What will you do on the following days?”, Mr Mousavi said, suggesting that street protests will continue.

Iran’s presidential vote returned hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power with a wide margin. But his reformist opponents cried foul and thousands of people took to the streets in the biggest anti-government protests in 30 years.

Authorities denied vote-rigging and portrayed the post-election unrest as a foreign-backed bid to undermine the state.

Police and elite revolutionary guards have warned that any “illegal” rally will be fiercely confronted today.

The opposition, which relies on its websites or mobile phone text messages to reach its supporters, has called on people to gather near Tehran University, where the main state rally will be held today.

Iranian authorities have slowed internet connections to a crawl or choked them off completely before the expected protests to deny the opposition a vital means of communication.

Connections in Tehran have been slow or completely down since Saturday.

Blocking internet access and mobile phone service has been one of the routine methods employed by the authorities to undermine the opposition in recent months.

The government has not publicly acknowledged it is behind the outages, but Iran’s internet service providers say the problem is not on their end and is not a technical glitch.

In another familiar tactic before such rallies, authorities have ordered journalists working for foreign media not to leave their offices to cover the demonstrations.

Reformist website Mowjcamp has warned of the possibility of clashes between security forces and demonstrators today.

In September, opposition demonstrators clashed with government backers and police at annual pro-Palestinian rallies.

Security forces also clashed with supporters of Mr Mousavi in Tehran on November 4th during an anti-US rally.

Mr Mousavi said suppressing the nation would not keep Mr Ahmadinejad in power. “After all these pressures, the [reform] movement has not ended . . . Believing that someone could rule the people despite their will is just a hallucination,” Mr Mousavi said. “The nation cannot tolerate their votes being stolen.”

The election dispute also exposed deep rifts within the normally opaque political and religious establishment.

Influential former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a rival of Mr Ahmadinejad who challenged the poll results, accused Iran’s hardline rulers of “silencing any constructive criticism by closing the door on any criticism”.

“The situation in the country is such that constructive criticism is not accepted,” Mr Rafsanjani was quoted as saying by the semi-official ILNA news agency yesterday.