Arash Aramesh

As Iran’s opposition staged demonstrations on Wednesday, defying the largest number of security forces witnesses said they had ever been seen on the streets of Tehran, the political establishment tried to minimize the importance of the unrest. The leadership also tried to discredit the demonstrators by claiming that they support the United States and Israel.

Fars news agency, which has close ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), reported that, “A group of rioters attacked the people, public facilities, and the security forces.” This conservative news site reported, “This group of rioters gathered in parts of the city and chanted slogans in support of the United States and Israel.” Fars added, “Mehdi Karroubi, who had issued statements calling for sedition, was seen among the crowds but he was forced to leave the scene when people began chanting death to America, death to Israel and death to hypocrite.”

Raja news, a news site close to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, ridiculed the opposition and wrote, “The Green Movement’s infantry has declined significantly in numbers.” Raja attacked Mir Hossein Moussavi, the former presidential contender, and asserted, “It is obvious that his support among the masses is dwindling. Despite weeks of advertising and calls for demonstration, they only had a tangible presence in the capital and they were absent in other cities.”

According to opposition sources, there were clashes between the protestors and the security forces. Karroubi, the former presidential candidate and a fierce opponent of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was attacked today by the security forces. According to the BBC Persian service, security forces attacked Moussavi’s office and prevented him from leaving the building and joining the protestors. According to BBC, the sound of gunfire could be heard in downtown Tehran.

The common theme of the protests were slogans criticizing Ahmadinejad’s foreign policy and slogans asking for President Obama to decide whether he is with the Iranian people or Ahmadinejad’s government. Security forces were more brutal than expected, according to witnesses in Tehran.

Yet despite the protests, most of the state-run media focused on the counter protests, which were staged by pro-government supporters. According to Sepah news, the turnout at the pro-government rally, held to mark the thirtieth anniversary of the U.S. hostage taking in Tehran in 1979, was much larger than in previous years.

Sepah news reported: “Despite great efforts made by foreign media and some suspicious political factions doing the bidding for the foreigners in order to misguide the ceremonies on the national day of fighting against imperialism, hundreds of thousands of Iranian people turned out in various groups, including university students, different classes of society and independent organizations and groups have joined this vast ocean of people’s protest.”