Amnesty International News Flash
For Immediate Release
Thursday, July 9, 2009

Amnesty International charges that Iran used tear gas used against demonstrators marking 18 Tir anniversary

Contact: AIUSA media office, 202-544-0200 x302

(Washington, DC)-- Amnesty International condemned the excessive use of force by Iranian security forces today, following baton charges and use of teargas against demonstrators in Tehran commemorating today's tenth anniversary of 18 Tir, the brutal suppression of student-lead protests in 1999.

"Once again today, the authorities have demonstrated their intolerance of dissent in a manner all too reminiscent of the ruthless methods they used in 1999," said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty International Deputy Program Director for Middle East and North Africa. "It is high time that they stop using strong arm tactics to crush protest and abide by their obligations under human rights law."

At least 200 demonstrators are reported to have gathered along Enghlab Avenue, around the gates of Tehran University, only to be confronted by a large presence of anti-riot police and plain-clothed security officials, possibly including members of the notorious Basij militia, who used baton charges and tear gas to disperse them.

Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 2.2 million supporters, activists and volunteers in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.

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