Iran to Execute Protestors

[Mirkana]

Well, if they want to execute them all, this is the right time. The news and videosites are far too preoccupied with the death of some popstar...

WMG: Iran killed Michael Jackson.

[Vicious Storms]

That's it. It's time to... ahem... "liberate" them.

Eliminate from existence?

[Gravlen]

And don't forget a further destabilization of the middle east, which could prove disastrous in the long run.

Eh I dunno, I reckon this might be a further episode of Giving Shi'a Islam A Kicking So The Saudis Feel Safer rather than a destabilisation.

And if it's seen as an attack on Shi'a islam, the Shi'a in Bahrain, Kuwait and Yemen might be upset, to mention a few countries with a majority / large minority of Shi'a muslims.
If it's seen as an attempt at more American imperialism or indirectly as Israeli zionism, certain groups like Hizballah could run wild.
If it's seen as an attempt at democratization, other pro-democracy movements could try to take advantage of the momentum to topple their own autocratic / authoritarian regimes. I mean, how do you think demands for a more democratic and open political system in Iran is impacting the domestic populations of Egypt, Saudi Arabia and other nations? It has not going unnoticed, and the governments fear it. An indication of this is the fact that Cairo and Riyadh is walking very softly and isn't giving overt support for the Iranian protests. Not to mention that in many places, if democratic elections were to be held, anti-western fundamentalists could very well get into power.
If it's seen as an attack on Islam, the shit could seriously hit the fan.

[Gravlen]

But what freedom is that, exactly? Are the protesters unified in this desire for freedom? (i.e. do they have a relatively similar idea of what kind of "freedom" they demand?)

Freedom on their own terms. If what I read on the BBC is any indication then the "freedom" referred to is to have more freedom of the press, freedom from the morality police (those who dictate dress) and less internet censorship.

Freedom fuelling Iran unrest

Sixty percent of the population are under 30 years old. They have no memory of the Islamic revolution in 1979. Many of them use the internet and watch satellite TV. Their window on the wider world is irreversibly open.

Many of them simply want peaceful change - and in particular an end to the strict laws that govern personal behaviour in Iran.

They want to be able to sing and dance. They wonder why the Iranian leadership continue to ban such expressions of human joy - a ban very similar to the rules imposed on Afghanistan during the Taliban regime.

Many young Iranians have a wide window on the world

And of course Iranians do sing and dance. I have been to several parties where the dancing was intense. And so was the drinking, though alcohol is also illegal.

Prohibition does not work. Many Iranians simply lead double lives.

An article in a magazine - available at Tehran news stands when I was there last year - carried the headline: "We are all hypocrites now."

Many women only cover their heads because they would be arrested if they did not.

I think this touches on some important points. And note the age gap. 60% are under 30 years old, but they have little voice or impact on their own country. Most of the ruling elite consists of older men. Look at some important players: Khatami is 65, Mousavi is 67, Khamenei is 69, Rafsanjani is 74, and Ahmadinejad is young at 52. The disconnect between the "ruling class" and the people is growing. But the urban and the rural areas are also moving at different speends and in different directions.

I'm not sure I have a point here, I feel I have gone off on a tangent

If they want the current system to stay, but Mousavi to become president, I'm not sure I'd go so far as to say that they really want democratic freedom.

It's clear that they want change, but it's not clear what that means in practical terms.

If it is the latter then I would retract my earlier statement.

I don't think you should, because as I see it, the two aren't necessarily mutually exclusive. The morality police isn't popular among many, and many want to have unrestricted access to the internet. This does not mean, however, that they necessarily wish to tear down the current system of government nor to overturn the islamic revolution. They just want more freedom within the system as it is today...

You do raise good points, and I hope I can address each adequately.

I think you are, and I'm happy you bother to try - unlike some people who choose the easier option of simply calling for the US to "invade / eliminate / liberate / throw pies at them!!1!"

[Vervaria]

I think you are, and I'm happy you bother to try - unlike some people who choose the easier option of simply calling for the US to "invade / eliminate / liberate / throw pies at them!!1!"

I'd be all for US agents pieing the Ayatollah and Ahmadineijad. *Nods*

[Hydesland]

That's it. It's time to... ahem... "liberate" them.

That would be bad. This is a situation where the Iranians have to decide the future themselves.

So by themselves, you mean a small elite oligarchy?

[Farnhamia]

That's it. It's time to... ahem... "liberate" them.

That would be bad. This is a situation where the Iranians have to decide the future themselves.

So by themselves, you mean a small elite oligarchy?

I believe Ann Coulter said it best in 2001: "We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity."

Don't you?

[Gauthier]

I think you are, and I'm happy you bother to try - unlike some people who choose the easier option of simply calling for the US to "invade / eliminate / liberate / throw pies at them!!1!"

I'd be all for US agents pieing the Ayatollah and Ahmadineijad. *Nods*

Make sure it's not pork pie or it'll kill Obama's attempts at normalising Islamic relations.

[Grays Harbor]

Now hardline members of the Iranian Parliament are wanting to investigate and prosecute opposition leaders.

Iranian hardliners pressed on Thursday for legal action against moderate leaders accused of inciting post-election turmoil that has dimmed Western hopes of engaging Tehran on its disputed nuclear program.

"Those who hold illegal rallies and gatherings should be legally pursued," parliament member Mohammad Taghi Rahbar was quoted as saying by the hardline Javan newspaper.

It said he was among several lawmakers preparing to write to the judiciary complaining about defeated candidate Mirhossein Mousavi's activities after the disputed June 12 election.

The student branch of the pro-government Basij militia, which helped police suppress street protests after the vote, has also urged the attorney-general to take Mousavi to court.

The authorities have blamed Mousavi, a moderate former prime minister, for last month's violence, in which at least 20 people were killed. Mousavi, who says the poll was rigged in favor of hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, rejects the charge.

Hardliners press for legal action

[Grays Harbor]

EDITOR'S NOTE: Iranian authorities have barred journalists for international news organizations from reporting on the streets and ordered them to stay in their offices. This report is based on the accounts of witnesses reached in Iran and official statements carried on Iranian media.

___

A top Iranian cleric said Friday that some of the detained Iranian staffers of the British Embassy in Tehran will be put on trial, and he accused Britain of a role in instigating widespread protests that erupted over the country's disputed presidential election.

The announcement by Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati came a day after the European Union demanded Iran release the staffers, who were detained on June 27. Britain is pressing EU countries to pull their ambassadors out of Tehran in protest.

Jannati, a powerful hard-liner who is close to Iran's supreme leader, told worshippers during a Friday prayer sermon in Tehran that the detained staffers "made confessions."

"In these events, their embassy had a presence," he said, referring to the post-election turmoil. "Some people were arrested. Well, inevitably, they will be put on trial."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090703/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_election

[United Russian State]

That's it. It's time to... ahem... "liberate" them.

Ha. I bet this is what some Amercain leaders are thinking right now.

Let Iran handle it's own problems. What the goverment of Iran is doing has gone too far but it does not give countries the right to "liberate" Iran and put a puppet goverment in of it's choice.

[Gravlen]

Now hardline members of the Iranian Parliament are wanting to investigate and prosecute opposition leaders.

"Now"? They've been calling for this for some time now. Nothing new there.

[Gravlen]

EDITOR'S NOTE: Iranian authorities have barred journalists for international news organizations from reporting on the streets and ordered them to stay in their offices. This report is based on the accounts of witnesses reached in Iran and official statements carried on Iranian media.

___

A top Iranian cleric said Friday that some of the detained Iranian staffers of the British Embassy in Tehran will be put on trial, and he accused Britain of a role in instigating widespread protests that erupted over the country's disputed presidential election.

The announcement by Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati came a day after the European Union demanded Iran release the staffers, who were detained on June 27. Britain is pressing EU countries to pull their ambassadors out of Tehran in protest.

Jannati, a powerful hard-liner who is close to Iran's supreme leader, told worshippers during a Friday prayer sermon in Tehran that the detained staffers "made confessions."

"In these events, their embassy had a presence," he said, referring to the post-election turmoil. "Some people were arrested. Well, inevitably, they will be put on trial."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090703/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_election

Has Iran begun executing protestors yet?