Amateur Video Shows 500,000 Iranians in Silent Mass Protest March

Bloomberg: Tens of thousands of supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi, the defeated main challenger in the disputed Iranian presidential election, rallied in central Tehran, video on Iranian state television showed, after the biggest protest in 30 years led to as many as 15 deaths. Iran?s Mousavi Urges Day of Mourning for Vote-Protest Victims By Ladane Nasseri and Ali Sheikholeslami June 18 (Bloomberg) -- The leading challenger to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for a mass demonstration today to mourn those killed in protests over the nation?s disputed presidential election. Tens of thousands of supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi rallied yesterday in the capital of Tehran in a fifth day of demonstrations, as Iran?s Foreign Ministry registered a diplomatic protest over what it called ?interfering remarks? by U.S. officials since the vote. Video of yesterday?s gathering in Haft Tir Square was posted on Facebook following the government?s decision to restrict foreign media. The rally followed a June 15 protest that was the largest anti-government demonstration since the Islamic revolution ousted Iran?s shah in 1979, triggered by opposition accusations of vote-rigging. According to elections officials, Ahmadinejad won about 63 percent of the June 12 vote, to about 34 percent for Mousavi and the rest to two other candidates. Ahmadinejad said in a cabinet meeting yesterday the poll was a ?referendum? in which ?25 million people confirmed this way of management in the country.? About 39 million voted, a record turnout of 85 percent. The election turmoil is pitting the Islamic republic?s ruling clergy against young Iranians and more educated voters who want social freedom and better ties with the West. Opposing Views Ahmadinejad?s opponents accuse him of wrecking the economy, which suffers from 10.5 percent unemployment and 24 percent inflation, and driving Iran into international isolation over the country?s nuclear program. The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog, Mohammed ElBaradei, told the BBC for the first time yesterday he believed Iran wanted the option of an atomic bomb. Mousavi, while backing Iran?s ?right? to nuclear technology, has said the president brought shame on the country with a management style ?based on adventurism, instability, unlawfulness and radicalism.? Ahmadinejad has called the Holocaust a ?myth,? while Mousavi has condemned violence against Jews. At least 15 people have been killed in protests since the June 12 election, seven in attacks on university dormitories in Tehran and Shiraz, south of the capital, and eight in the June 15 march when security forces fired on protesters, the British Broadcasting Corp.?s Persian service reported. Mousavi called for a national day of mourning today, according to his Web site. He called the killings ?savage,? adding ?the people know who attacked the university dormitories, beat boys and girls, and who killed people in Azadi Square? where the June 15 demonstration was held. More Rallies Sought Mehdi Karrubi, another defeated candidate, has called for people to wear black tomorrow in mourning for those killed and attend a rally where Friday prayers will be led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to his official Web site. A major political party controlled by clerics has requested the Interior Ministry?s permission to hold another rally tomorrow. Former President Mohammad Khatami is planning to attend the march and Mousavi will address the crowd, the pro- Mousavi Mowj-e Sevvom Web site reported. Khamenei appealed for unity June 16 following a meeting with representatives of candidates in the presidential voting. He has also said he would back a recount in some areas if an examination proves it necessary, Agence France-Presse reported. The clergy-led council overseeing elections said a partial recount may be authorized. Partial Recount Rejected Mousavi, who accuses the authorities of vote fraud, and another candidate, former Parliament Speaker Mehdi Karrubi, rejected a partial recount, the Iranian Labor News Agency said. Switzerland?s ambassador in Tehran, who represents U.S. interests, was summoned yesterday to receive the complaint from the Foreign Ministry about U.S. interference in the election dispute, AFP said. Iran and the U.S. broke off diplomatic relations following the 1979 revolution. P.J. Crowley, a State Department spokesman, told a briefing in Washington late yesterday he wasn?t sure exactly what was in the message handed to the Swiss ambassador. He said there had been no U.S. interference. ?Ultimately, this is about how the Iranian government addresses the concerns that are being voiced as we speak by their own people,? Crowley said. ?It?s not for us to dictate what Iran should do.? Regime in ?Crisis? The Iranian regime ?is going through its biggest crisis in 30 years,? said Mohammad-Reza Djalili, an Iranian analyst at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. ?The structure of the system has been shaken, and now it has cracks.? The Iranian rial strengthened to 9,897 per dollar yesterday from 9,915 the day before. The currency?s rate is managed by Bank Markazi, the central bank. Iran?s benchmark index, the TEPIX, closed at 9,247, a loss of 0.26 percent, according to data published on the Web site of the Tehran Stock Exchange. Iran is the second biggest oil producer in the Organization of Oil Exporting Countries.