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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Iran's silenced students strike back |
| 2006-12-24 |
| AS PROTESTS broke out at a prestigious Tehran university, cutting short a speech by president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Babak Zamanian could only watch from afar. He was on crutches, having been clubbed by supporters of the president and had his foot run over by a motorcycle during a less publicised student demonstration a few days earlier. But the significance of the confrontation earlier this month was easy to grasp, even from a distance, said Zamanian, a leader of a student political group. The student movement, which planned the 1979 seizure of the United States embassy from the same university, Amir Kabir, is reawakening from its recent slumber and may even be spearheading a widespread resistance against Ahmadinejad. This time the catalysts were academic and personal freedom. "It is not that simple to break up a president's speech," said Alireza Siassirad, a former student political organiser, explaining that an event of that magnitude takes meticulous planning. "I think what happened at Amir Kabir is a very important and dangerous sign. Students are definitely becoming active again." |
| Posted by:Seafarious |