Senior Iranian Cleric Threatens Protesters
VOA News
20 Jun 2003, 13:25 UTC
A senior Iranian cleric has called on Iran's hardline judiciary to act forcefully against anti-government protesters who have caused unrest in the Islamic Republic over the last 10 days.
Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi told worshipers gathered for Friday prayers in Tehran that the instigators of the pro-democracy demonstrations are the "enemies of God" - a charge that carries the death penalty.
He said the Islamic Republic's judiciary should not show any compassion for the demonstrators because they have jeopardized national security. The Ayatollah's rhetoric was strong despite a decrease in the number of protesters who turned out Thursday night around Tehran University, a center of the demonstrations. Protests have also taken place outside the capital in several major cities.
A police crackdown on the protesters has seen hundreds of people arrested during the last 10 days in an effort to quell the unrest. Ayatollah Yazdi directed some of his anger at the United States, which has publicly encouraged the Iranian protests. He said Iran is not Afghanistan or Iraq, and the Iranian people would fight "until the last drop of their blood" if their country or religion were threatened.
Some information for this report provided by AFP and Reuters.
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