Iran: rallies mark Islamic revolution day
Updated on 11 February 2010
Iranian's opposition leaders are urging people to take part in anti-government protests to coincide with official celebrations to mark the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution.
The anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution falls at a time when Iran has witnessed the first unrest since those historic days 31 years ago.
The country is dealing with an escalating domestic crisis as increasing numbers of Iranians rally around opponents of hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
More mass demonstrations are expected later following huge rallies when Mr Ahmadinejad was re-elected last June in a vote that was widely denounced as fraudulent.
Iranian opposition website Green Voice reports that security forces have fired shots and teargas at supporters of opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi in central Tehran.
It follows a warning from a top police official who said authorities have already made a series of arrests of suspected activists.
Esmail Ahmadi-Moghaddam also said the Revolutionary Guards and Basij Islamic militia are ready to clamp down on any "incident".
He told reporters: "We are fully prepared for holding a safe and glorious rally."
For more Channel 4 News coverage on Iran
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- Blog: protesters battle to be heard
Official events will centre around Tehran's Azadi square, where President Ahmadinejad is expected to speak to a crowd which in previous years has numbered tens of thousands of his supporters.
Opposition websites say the day belongs to all Iranians and have urged its backers to attend the rally too - raising the possibility of a showdown.
It is expected demonstrators will again turn to the internet and social media sites like Twitter to organise protests and to show the outside world what is happening.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that authorities plan to suspend Google's e-mail service, Gmail.
Internet connections have frequently been slow or unreliable during times of political turmoil over the past eight months.
Meanwhile, Iran faces growing western calls for targeted sanctions after President Ahmedinejad ordered production of higher-grade uranium. It has stirred fresh global fears that Tehran is aiming to make nuclear bombs.
