TEHRAN,
Iran (Reuters) - Hundreds of Iranian hardline Islamic vigilantes, police and
pro-democracy youths fought sporadic street battles near Tehran University
Wednesday, the anniversary of violent 1999 student unrest.
A witness said police fired tear gas at groups of youths near the campus and
also fought hand-to-hand with plainclothes Islamic militiamen to prevent them
from engaging in further battles with the pro-democracy youths.
"The atmosphere is very tense, the smell of tear gas is thick in the air. Police
have clashed with youths, the youths have fought with Basijis (militiamen) and
I saw police fighting Basijis trying to get closer to the university," the
witness said.
Authorities had banned gatherings and closed campuses in the expectation of
possible unrest to mark the day four years ago when hardline vigilantes
attacked a Tehran University dormitory, killing one person and sparking five
days of mass protests.
The Basij militiamen, identifiable only by their trademark beards, clubs and
untucked shirts, are fiercely loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,
Iran's most powerful figure.
They are outside the control of moderate President Mohammad Khatami who
indirectly supervises the civilian police through the Interior Ministry and the
National Security Council he heads.
Hundreds of riot police reinforcements later poured in to take control of the
area, dispersing crowds and chasing youths into side streets and beating them
with batons.
Police appeared to have a firmer grip on security than during last month's
unrest, when at times they stood by and watched as vigilantes beat protesters
with chains, cables and clubs and roared around on motorcycles attacking
protesters at will.
But cars still clogged the downtown area into the night with drivers beeping
horns when Basij or police were not looking.
STUDENTS SEIZED, WHEREABOUTS UNKNOWN
Many ordinary Iranians have lost patience with Khatami's failure to advance
reforms in the face of hardline opposition and are weary of high unemployment
and strict Islamic laws.
But analysts point out previous protests have always fizzled out following
tough crackdowns, and the number of people prepared to protest in the streets
remains relatively small.
Police arrested some 4,000 people during 10 nights of sometimes violent
protests across the country in June.
Though dwarfed by official marches, the June protests went a step beyond
previous pro-reform demonstrations with chants condemning Khamenei and Khatami
alike.
The United States strongly supported the demonstrations. Tehran has accused
Washington of blatant interference in its affairs.
At one point Wednesday, a group of armed Islamic vigilantes pushed aside police
to seize three reformist student leaders after they held a news conference to
announce the cancellation of planned protests.
"We cannot call it arrest, it was a kidnapping," Matin Meshkini, a
student leader, told Reuters.
Eight senior members of Iran's largest pro-reform student organization were
seized by unidentified assailants before Wednesday and their whereabouts are
still unknown, another student leader said.
Khatami's younger brother, the head of Iran's largest reform party, urged the
president to prevent torture of political prisoners and accused shadowy
organizations of making arrests and operating in parallel to the normal
security apparatus. 07/09/03 17:25 ET