Sixth Day of Clashes in Tehran - 2003-06-15

President Bush described the anti-government protests by Iranian students as a positive step towards freedom. On Sunday, while visiting his father's home in Maine, he stated that freedom is a powerful motivation that will eventually be realized. Early Sunday, after the White House criticized the Iranian government's efforts to suppress the protesters, the Iranian Foreign Ministry sharply criticized what it claimed were blatant U.S. interventions in Iran's internal affairs. A spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry stated that Americans consider a few protest demonstrations as a symbol of the cries of the Iranian people. Last week, marches began in protest against the government's decision to privatize Iranian universities. However, the demonstrators quickly transformed their march into protests against the hardline clerics of Iran. On Sunday, for the sixth consecutive day, a small group of students marched in the streets of Tehran. Official Iranian media report that 109 people have been arrested in connection with the student protests. Additionally, one person has been killed by police in the city of Shiraz. Government thugs have been attacking students with clubs. On Saturday night, pressure groups raided the dormitories of Tehran University students and severely beat the demonstrators. To prevent the thugs from attacking for the second consecutive night, Iran's anti-riot police created a safety cordon around Tehran University to prevent attacks by pressure groups and vigilante Basij forces on the students' dormitories.