Second Night of Protests in the Streets of Tehran - 2003-06-12

Thousands of people in Iran took to the streets of Tehran for the second consecutive night to protest against the clerical government. Iranian security forces attempted to block the way of students and their families who were trying to reach Tehran University, the site of the protests on Tuesday. Following the announcement of the protests by an opposition satellite television station in the U.S., demonstrators surged into the streets. The protests on Tuesday, which continued until the early hours of Wednesday, were ultimately broken up by police officers, resulting in the arrest of 80 individuals. The ongoing series of protests in Iran has not been seen in recent months. Last year, thousands of Iranian students had taken to the streets in protest against the sentencing of Hashem Aghajari, a university professor, on charges of insulting officials. Following these protests, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran ordered a review of the death sentence against Mr. Aghajari. The protesting students on Wednesday shouted slogans against the clerical regime and called for the resignation of Mohammad Khatami, the President of Iran, who has been unable to fulfill his commitments.