Iran doesn't seem to making news so much lately, but the Green people of Iran are still fighting.
Here is a beautiful piece written by a young Iranian about what's going on there now.
Prayers Make History
This is a beautiful account of last Friday Prayers in Tehran. It talks about the huge turnout for the prayer session, and how religious and non-religious Iranians used Friday Prayers to gather momentum for protests.
According to this account, non-religious are making efforts to find common ground with the religious, and many of the religious are turning against Khamenei.
Most of those seated near and around us were religious types: chador-clad women, pious-looking men, and among them even a cleric. During the first part of the sermon, Rafsanjani recounted a historic narrative where Prophet Mohammad advises Imam Ali [the first Shia leader], "If people are not satisfied with your governance, you must withdraw and let people decide their governor." At this, an approving cry of Allah-o-Akbar arose. Some in the crowd, obviously novices unfamiliar with the conventions of Friday Prayer, began applauding and whistling. Pro-Mousavi unity aside, I feared that the religious men and women sitting nearby would take offense at this inappropriate behavior. But they merely tittered — and astonishingly, the cleric was clapping along! Once I saw this, I had no qualms about joining in the applause.
I overheard a chador-clad middle-aged woman sitting next to me tell her teenage daughter, who also wore a chador, "Imam Ali would submit to the desire of the people, but this Agha [the title for Khamenei] believes himself to be above even Imam Ali!"
The narrator also tells of Basij possibly mixing mustard gas in with the tear gas as the regime gets more desperate to discourage protests.
It's inspiring to see how so many Iranians continue to struggle even as the regime kills, tortures and disappears them. Also very interesting is the inventive ways the people find to join forces and wage protests.
The protester build fires to ease the effects of tear gas. I found this account of one such fire especially interesting for obvious reasons.
As the air cleared a bit, people were attempting to make fires with dry leaves and newspapers and whatever else was at hand. And there was a surreal sight, if I ever saw one: two chador-clad ladies lifted their chadors from their heads and set them aflame, to add to the bonfire. People huddled around, and I went forth too, to get black smoke and cigarette smoke in my eyes to counter the effects of the tear gas.
Power to the people. May the Iranian people's struggle be successful soon. This is only part one of the story. Part two will be published in a day or two.
Let us keep the Iranian struggle alive on DK by posting news where we find it. They have worked too hard to be forgotten by us. If their struggle is successful, it will help change the whole Middle East. Viva Persia!