Iran Revolution Day 15: Deadly Silence

10:00 pm: The Guardian is reporting: Iran opposition alleges plot to implicate Mir Hossein Mousavi

Jailed Iranian reformists have been tortured in an attempt to force them into TV "confessions" of a foreign-led plot against the Islamic regime, it was alleged today, as the country's guardian council buried hopes for any significant revision of the disputed presidential election.

According to Iranian opposition websites, the "confessions" are aimed at implicating Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, the defeated reformist candidates, in an alleged conspiracy.

Mostafa Tajzadeh, Abdollah Ramezanzadeh and Mohsen Aminzadeh, all Mousavi supporters, are reported to have undergone "intensive interrogation" sessions in Tehran's Evin prison since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's disputed re-election.

They are among several hundred activists, academics, journalists and students detained in a crackdown coinciding with the brutal suppression of street protests.

Prisoners reportedly heard screams from Tajzadeh and Ramezanzadeh in Evin's section 209, which is reserved for political prisoners and is run by the hardline intelligence ministry. Aminzadeh, a former deputy foreign minister, was heard shouting: "I am not going to give interviews."

Amnesty International said the reports came from "very credible sources".

8:40 pm: Streets of Tehran like a garrison. People are depressed and angry.

8:13 pm Dissident Hoda Saber, of the Freedom movement, and journalist Reza Alijani were freed. Taghti Rahmani was also released earlier. (hat tip Chad)

What is happening to the less visible political prisoners?

7:54 pm: Unconfirmed, but I am getting this repeatedly off the tweetdeck....that the most prolific and courageous twitter poster, Persian Kiwi, has been arrested. This is looking more like genocide. Where is the world? Where is America? Many of us who were following Persian Kiwi felt as if we knew PK personally. Another one of us ..........disappearing.

One of the many PK tweets: : I'm so sorry.I recived [sic]the persiankiwi arrest news from a honest source but I hope it's been incorrect.

Ali Hejvani & Ali Mosleh arrested. They are bloggers.

When Obama campaigned on change!, who could have imagined that he meant change from freedom lover to freedom snuffer.

Mahtab Nasirpour                                                    Homar Rusta (right)

7:25 pm: Tweeters getting arrested. Latest off the tweet deck: At least two actresses arrested : Homa Rusta & Mahtab Nasirpour.

Iranelection #Iran (10 minutes ago). FilmmakerMag: Oh no.

7:01  pm: Ahmadinejad mocks Obama here. Perhaps this will galvanize the left and they will come out against Ahmadinejad in a furious way (ya know, they way they destroy Republicans). Ahmadinejad ridiculing their messiah? Let's see how BO's hos take off the jihad loving gloves and lace into the poison dwarf.

5:49: The illegal brutal government of Ahmadinejad has succeeding in quelling the street protests by mowing peaceful protesters down in the street over the past two weeks.

'Hacktivists' take up Iran fight as streets quiet AP

Groups of "hacktivists" — Web hackers demanding Internet freedom — say they are targeting Web pages of Iran's leadership in response to the regime's muzzling of blogs, news outlets and other sites.

It's unclear how much the wired warriors have disrupted official Iranian sites. Attempts by The Associated Press to access sites for state news organizations, including the Islamic Republic News Agency and Fars, were unsuccessful — with a message saying the links were "broken."

Heh.

According to twitterers: Trading has come to a halt today and the Bazaar is virtually closed. Bazaar is are on strike

5:02 pm: Today in Liberty Park

4:12 pm: Great American Rich Davis took up the cause of the brave in Iran at his weekly West Chester Victory rally on the corner of High and Market Street in West Chester, PA. oorah!

Rich writes me:

Today the American Sheepdogs, home of the Chester County Victory Movement wore green wristbands as a show of solidarity with the brave protestors in Iran who are being beaten and shot and taken away at night because they are standing up against the brutal rdictator and mullahs that are running their country.

All of us wore green wristband in the hope it will inspire other Americans to show similar support for the courageous people in Iran.  For years American leadership has encouraged the people to rise up against the brutal Ahmadinejad regime, and when they finally do, they got a tardy and weak response from Obama who they were counting on for  support.  Most distressing is the way the barbarian regime is going after the Iranian women.  Shooting them (like Neda).  Our hearts are wrenched as we watch them being massacred.  The press is unwilling to cover the killings, but we hope our little show of support will bring awareness to the atrocities being committed to those who seek freedom.

Going Green, the Sheepdogs show support for Freedom Fighters.

Great group shot, everyone has the green

Military moms:  Evie, (left) her son is an army combat medic fresh off a tour of Afghanistan, Mary (in the middle) her son is young Marine officer, fresh from Iraq, Mary Lou (on the right) - her son is serving in Iraq as we speak. He is with the PA national guard. Great Americans all!

Tehran building attacked by security forces

Twitter Amnesty International claims Mousavi aides tortured to extract confessions

3:28 pm: Reuters reporting: Night raids terrorize Iran residents: rights group

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iranian paramilitary Basij forces stage nightly raids in Tehran, invading private homes and beating residents in an attempt to stop protests against Iran's disputed election, Human Rights Watch reported.

 "Witnesses are telling us that the Basijis are trashing entire streets and even neighborhoods as well as individual homes trying to stop the nightly rooftop protest chants," Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, said in a June 26 report by the New York-based group.

"On June 22, while we were shouting 'Allahu Akbar' from the rooftops ... the Basiji entered our neighborhood and started firing live rounds into the air, in the direction of the buildings from which they believe the shouting of 'Allahu Akbar' is coming from," a middle-aged resident of Vanak district said, according to the report.

A woman said Basijis climbed over walls to enter homes after they failed to kick down doors in Velenjak district when people were shouting from rooftops on June 23.

"When they entered the homes, they beat the residents. The neighbors took to cursing the Basijis and throwing stones at them to divert them from beating the residents, but then the Basijis attacked those neighbors' houses and tried to enter them," she was quoted as saying.

Another resident said Basijis spray-painted a sign on the doors of houses in a central district where they thought protesters had fled.

"A few minutes later, they came back and attacked the marked houses, breaking down the doors and entering them. They beat the owners, and broke the windows in the house and of their cars," the resident said, according to the report.

3:10 pm: I take it back. It is better when FOX doesn't cover Iran. The very little coverage they are giving it today serves the interests of Ahmadinejad. They keep talking to Kayvon Biouki, "freelance journalist," who claims there is no torture going on (we have video, schmuck), and there is no unrest. The guy is clearly a pro-government tool, so why would FOX give him such a platform?

2:17 pm: The left can't muster the same enthusiasm for supporting those being slaughtered in Iran as they could for their anti-America, anti-Iraq war efforts. Vigilant squirrel has full coverage here. At least these poorly attended efforts are not for Ahmadinejad.

The right should be staging big rallies. It is a mistake not to get behind these people.

The Brigade went to the two commie-sponsored rallies on the 26th of June in Manhattan.

The first 'event' by the Worker Party-types at the Islamic Republic of Iran's Consulate was about 7 people from the Workers Party with no Iranians; basically a non-event. (will post a few pictures later)

The Big Display was later at Columbus Circle.They do know how to put on a display with lots and lots of green and candles and speakers and music.....
However, the most prevalent aspect (besides their supposed support for "free" elections) was their out-reach via Revolution newspapers, very Leftist speakers and Commie-sponsored flyers from the Workers Party and Amnesty International. (will also post the flyers later)

Mixed in with their support for "Free" elections, were plenty of slams at America and praise for the "Big Zero".

1:156 pm: Mousavi rejects bogus gesture to recount 10% of the vote.

1:25 pm: Help Stop the Slaughter of Iranian Freedom Seekers (please sign).

12:18 pm: As Obama skulks away from the responsibilities of leading the free world, authoritarian regimes censor news from Iran China, Cuba and Burma fear activism could spread to their countries.

12:08 pm: The fight against Ahmadinejad:

Mousavi's website was hacked and is now shut down.

Mousavi's message to Iranian ex-pats. Read the whole thing here.

Unfortunately, as you witness in the international media, contrary to the letter of the constitution, and the stated freedoms in the Islamic Republic, all my communication with the people and you has been cut off, and people’s peaceful objections are being crushed. The national media which is being financed with public funds, with a revolting misrepresentation is changing the truth, and labels the peaceful march of close to three million people as anarchist, and the media that are being controlled by the government have become the mouthpiece of those who have stolen the people’s votes.

I’d like to thank you again for your peaceful objections which have received widespread coverage across the world, and would like to ask you that by using all legal channels, and by remaining faithful to the sacred system of the Islamic Republic, to make sure that your objections are heard by the authorities in the country. I am fully aware that your justified demands have nothing to do with groups who do not believe in the sacred Islamic Republic of Iran’s system. It is up to you to distance yourself from them, and do not allow them to misuse the current situation.

A good statement, no doubt, and who knows the pressure he is under, but it appears that Mousavi is faltering. Big mistake. AP reports:

Iran's increasingly isolated opposition leader said he'll seek government approval for future protests, even as he complained of unfair restrictions - a new sign that he is backing away from confrontation with Iran's rulers over a bitterly disputed election.

This is a complete turnaround from his position just the day before when he said that the attempt to steal the election would be crushed.

Click here for Atlas liveblogging archives: Iran: The Revolution

Comments

[canasia_us]

You know who else has been silent on this whole thing besides Hussein? The UN. I haven't heard a peep out of those losers, to defend human rights, etc. I guess the UN is not about human rights either.

[jayeeegee]

Mousavi was one of the founders of Hezbollah and engineered the slaughter of our Marines in Lebanon in the 1980's. Did anyone really think he would be another George Washington or Patrick Henry?

As long as Iran - or any country - is governed by strict adherance to an Islamic law system, the people will never have the freedoms enjoyed by the West (at least for now). I'm afraid that, because of the Islamic nature of Iran, its so-called "revolution" was doomed before it began.

[CHOI]

Yes folks, for those of us not alive in 1934, we've just seen "The Night of The Long Knives" REDUX in the Nazi Germany REDUX,aka ."The Islamic Republic of Iran".
OH, AND GUESS WHAT THE PERSIANS CLAIM TO BE?:
The Original Aryans.
So the REDUX is REALLY "The Islamic Republic of ARYAN Iran" .

[moderationist]

Once world media starts to turn against these monsters, the monsters are in trouble. Hopefully, this horrific event spotlighted the pure evil that is Islam

[abinitioadinfinitum]

An Iranian that I was following on Twitter was just arrested, and also at least two actresses arrested : Homa Rusta & Mahtab Nasirpour. Not much news getting out. I fear the worst for the guy I was following.
What an asshole obama IS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
.
Those are some beautiful Americans!!!

[abinitioadinfinitum]

Wonderful news--Am Safe. Basiji corruptd my twttr acct DONT SEND INFO TO ME

[Kenny Solomon]

....and the media in the USA covers nothing other than Michael Jackson.

It's almost as if somebody told him to or helped him to kick off to distract everyone from what's happening around the world and here at home.

I pray for everyone's freedom.... except those who wish us dead or worse (enslaved) and yes, that exception includes people in our own government.

Kenny Solomon
Typical, bitter, Jewish, God-clinging, gun owner and barking-mad insane NASCAR fan, locked and loaded in South Flori-duh.
Bing, biiiiing, biiiiiiiiiiing, Oy Vey .... It's Ricochet Rabbi !!

[Dawning]

Mostafa Tajzadeh, Abdollah Ramezanzadeh and Mohsen Aminzadeh, all Mousavi supporters, are reported to have undergone "intensive interrogation" sessions in Tehran's Evin prison since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's disputed re-election.
I'll bet they are using that horrable WATERBOARDING

[mishgei]

If all they get is waterboarded, consider them lucky, I'm doubtful that those Islamic beasts will be so kind. Remember that video of the Saudi prince beating that grain merchant with a board stuck with nails?

[moderationist]

The liberal media deniers of evil must not be allowed to put this into the dustbin of history like they did with the Mumbai massacre. The Peta signs are very encouraging!

[Polarik]

" I am fully aware that your justified demands have nothing to do with groups who do not believe in the sacred Islamic Republic of Iran’s system. It is up to you to distance yourself from them, and do not allow them to misuse the current situation."

Mousavi has always been as committed to the Islamic Republic just as much as Ahmadinejad, but he's not an Islamic Messianic Megalomaniac. Daniel Pipes preferred to have Ahmadinejad in there so that no one would mistake the madness of the Mullahs rule the roost