The demonstrations continue on in Iran but the crowds are getting smaller as the Basij thugs are becoming more and more brutal:
Security forces wielding clubs and firing weapons beat back demonstrators who flocked to a Tehran square Wednesday to continue protests, two witnesses said.
One witness said security forces beat people like “animals.”
~~~At least two sources described wild and violent conditions at a part of Tehran where protesters had planned to demonstrate.
“They were waiting for us,” the source said. “They all have guns and riot uniforms. It was like a mouse trap.
“I see many people with broken arms, legs, heads — blood everywhere — pepper gas like war,” the source said.
Around “500 thugs” with clubs came out of a mosque and attacked people in the square, another source said.
The security forces were “beating women madly” and “killing people like hell,” the source said.
“They beat up a woman so bad she was all bloody,” the source said in a description that underscores the growing and central role of women in the uprising.
“Women are playing an amazing role in the streets, both in terms of numbers and effectiveness,” according to a member of Mir Hossein Moussavi’s party.
The Iranian capital remained tense Wednesday. Some residents said they were too afraid to talk about the political crisis over the phone to anyone in the United States or Europe. Many protesters debated whether to show up on the streets.
“I am not going outside my house at all! The streets are too dangerous, and just so very busy with police,” a 21-year-old college student from Tehran said. “Ahhhh, when will our lives get back to normal?”
Worried that the government was monitoring their phone conversations, some residents said the Internet was the best way to transmit information. However, the spotty connection made it difficult to rely on the Web.
“It’s beyond fear,” said a woman who arrived at a U.S. airport from Iran but still did not want her name used for fear for her safety. “The situation is more like terror.” Video Watch arrivals describe the situation
Reports of arrests of foreign nationals are also being spread claiming they are helping to incite the protests. Also, the Iranian government is now claiming Neda may have been killed by mistake….stating, get this, that the marksmen had mistaken her for the sister of a member of the People’s Mujahedin Organization of Iran, which promotes a secular Marxist government.
Latest video to come out of the unrest:
And another flip-flop from Obama:
The Obama administration is seriously considering not extending invitations to Iranian diplomats for July 4 celebrations overseas, senior administration officials tell CNN.
The officials said intense discussions on the issue were taking place, but the final decision had not been made.
Late last month the State Department sent a cable to its embassies and consulates worldwide informing them they “may invite representatives from the government of Iran” to their July 4th celebrations.
The U.S. receptions marking Independence Day usually feature symbols of Americana, such as hot dogs, red-white-and-blue decorations and remarks by U.S. officials about America’s founding fathers.
I swear, the man can’t help but straddle the fence, waiting to see which way the wind blows. The true sign of a non-leader.
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