Violent Street Battles Reported in Iranian Capital
VOA News
09 Jul 2003, 17:52 UTC
Reports from Iran say hundreds of Iranian pro-democracy protesters in the capital are fighting running street battles with Islamic vigilantes and police.
Witnesses say police fired tear gas near the campus of Tehran University Wednesday and fought with militiamen in an attempt to restore order.
The street fighting comes hours after three leading student activists were detained in the capital. Reuters news agency quotes witnesses as saying about 15 people armed with handguns pushed aside uniformed police and forced the three activists into waiting cars. Moments earlier, the activists had said they feared a violent backlash from government security forces.
Other reports say some pro-democracy activists at the scene barricaded themselves in their organization's (Office to Consolidate Unity) headquarters. The protestors refused to come out until reformists lawmakers arrived to guarantee their safety.
The demonstrations were originally called to mark the fourth anniversary of violent student protests in Tehran.
Four years ago, hardline vigilantes attacked a Tehran University dormitory, killing one person and sparking nearly a week of mass protests.
Some information for this report provided by AFP and Reuters.
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