More Blood and the Islamic Republic In Doubt

More Blood and the Islamic Republic in Doubt

More blood today on the streets of Tehran. Ten, thirteen, perhaps more killed today by the Iranian security forces. Green protest banners were draped with the black of mourning and mixed with more red blood smelling of death.

The red-black-green flag pictured above, which was created in New York in 1920 by the United Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA), could easily symbolize the 2009 anti-government protests in Iran. The green could symbolize the anti-government Mousavi opposition. The black could stand for the eight protesters killed by the state at the outset of the protests. The red might signify the blood of the new protesters killed today.

The incredible protests continue against the Ahmadinejad regime. Mousavi told his supporters to fight on, even if he is killed. The sanctity of the Islamic Republic of Iran has now been questioned by the opposition protesters. A more free press, human rights, democracy, and the rule of law have been demanded. Twitter, Facebook, and amateur video feeds are sustaining support for the protesters from Toronto to Los Angeles and Berlin to Paris. An LA rabbi, who lives in an area with a high concentration of Iranians, said that the protesters resembled a biblical vision for freedom from bondage!

I am glad that the Canadian government today spoke out against the brutality of the regime, which mercilessly kills its own people:

http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/06/21/the-iranian-people-deserve-to-have-their-voices-heard/

Some now wonder, including US Republicans, whether the Obama administration will come out with such a powerful statement. I continue to salute the brave people of Iran. They should be a source of great inspiration for people under authoritarian regimes from Saudi Arabia to Libya and North Korea to Cuba. And for all of us, who long for more democratic political spaces.

Tamir Bar-On