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Iran
General Strike Set in Iran In Bid To Topple Mullahs
2003-04-24
EFL. From the NY Sun, so obviously I had to clean up the formatting.
Mark the date: July 9. That’s when opponents of the Iranian regime have called a general strike that they hope will expand to topple the government there and bring freedom and democracy to the Iranian people.
A "general strike", how French of you.
The strike is being organized by pro-freedom student groups to coincide with the fourth anniversary of the last student uprising in Iran that saw thousands of students take to the streets against the Islamic Republic’s ruling mullahs.
As I recall, the Mullaz had to import muscle from places like Gaza to put the earlier protests down.
The planned event — indeed, the Iranian freedom movement as a whole — could take on a new dimension now that Iran’s western neighbor, Iraq, is free from Saddam Hussein’s tyranny.
It will be interesting to see what happens. Setting a date relatively far in the future essentially dares the Iranian government to quell it in advance. Efforts to do so between now and July 9 will either demonstrate the power of the police state or serve to promote the event and make it all the more important.
Reza Pahlavi, the son of the late shah of Iran, has been in touch with student organizers and is lending his support to the event.
"This could be a major turning point. It is crucial for the world community to pick up on this," Mr. Pahlavi told The New York Sun. "The best way to invest in regime change in Iran is through the people of Iran themselves. It is so important at this stage to be supportive of the Iranian people and give them this moral solace that they’re not alone." Mr. Pahlavi told the Sun the mullahs’ "days are numbered" and that "Iranian society is picking up on these vibes..."
It'll take more than vibes to bring down a theocracy.
Yesterday, the French foreign minister, Dominique 'the weasel' de Villepin, arrived in Tehran for meetings with Iranian officials,including President Khatemi,and the chairman of the powerful Expediency Council, a former president of Iran, Hashemi Rafsanjani. The visit has angered Senator Sam Brownback, a Republican of Kansas who has championed the cause of freeing Iran. "The Iranian people are struggling for their freedom and yet, France continues to do business with this torturous regime" Mr. Brownback said yesterday. "Iran’s current regime is the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world. I find it shameful that the French would claim to support a secure world, and then do business with a regime that is actively dedicated to destroying that security."
"It was only business, Mike..."
Protests are planned today in Iran against Mr. de Villepin, Ms. Zand-Bonazzi said. "Iranian university students and women are going to go out there and demonstrate in front of the French Embassy. We’re hoping it will be a huge turnout. The French have made dirty deals with the mullahs. Chirac is one of the best friends of Khatemi."
Maybe France will help restore Islamic pride by adopting Sharia around the same time Iran drops it.
Posted by:JAB

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