We publish an eyewitness report of the events that unfolded on Ashura, 27th December 2009, in Tehran. They give a taste of the sheer determination of the protestors in the face of brutal police repression. What is most significant is the fact that many of the police were "arrested" by the protestors who took their shileds and uniforms from them. As the comrade says, "the rebellious atmosphere that I saw does not want to go home!"
We went out in the morning ... with 10-15 friends and comrades ... When we went into the street [Revolution Street, Khiyaban-e Enghelab] we were faced with a mass of people, which was strange for us, considering the small number of people at the demonstration the day before, we did not expect such a mass of people. People on both sides of Revolution Street were walking towards Revolution Square [Meydan-e Enghelab]. Before Revolution Square, a plain-clothes agent started swearing at one of us. This escalated, but with all the people there, the plain-clothes agent did not dare to step on the pavement. At this time we began chanting "Mercenary, get lost" and everyone quickly repeated it.
College Bridge in Tehran on Ashura, 27th December 2009. The encircled men are shooting at the crowd. Photo from sigarchi.net.
We went past Ferdowsi Square, right at the beginning of College Bridge, the bridge opposite Alborz College. People tried to suddenly rush from the pavements into the street and to occupy the street. But because of the ruthless attack of the motorcycle police they were forced to retreat. We then went past Alborz College, when all of a sudden a brutal attack began against us by the riot police and plain-clothes agents. The effect of this attack was that I was separated from a group of friends and was forced to escape … A large number of the people had escaped in that direction with me. The violent clashes between the people and the forces of repression continued in front of Alborz College. Until then, the power was in the hands of the police and the basiji. Then suddenly everything changed. I was right under College Bridge when I realised that the plain-clothes agents and the riot police were abandoning their motor cycles and running back. On the other side people throwing stones were driving them back. For a moment, there was a strange atmosphere in that area. Everyone’s spirits had gone up, the people had taken over College Bridge. They set the motorcycles of the police and the basiji on fire.
A branch of Saderat Bank that is right at the top of College Bridge was set alight by the people. For a few minutes I went into Hafez Street to have a look at the situation there too. A militant atmosphere ruled everywhere. I went back towards Alborz College. The police had regained control of the bridge, people started throwing stones at them form below the bridge. Stones were raining towards the bridge. It was likely that I could also get injured, I moved away so that the stones wouldn't hurt me. Suddenly bullets began to be fired directly from the bridge. I took refuge in the gutter. Later my friends said that they, fearing the bullets, had gone into the blazing bank! After the shooting I found my friends. Together we went towards Hafez Street. There, like opposite Alborz College, they were firing lots of tear gas and pepper spray. All over the streets people were starting fires to stop the effects of the tear gas. People were chanting "We’re are ashamed, we’re are ashamed, [to have a] stupid leader", "This is the [Muslim moharram] month of blood, Seyyed Ali [Khamenei] is toppled", "Down with Khamenei", “I’ll kill whoever killed my brother", "Ya Hossein, Mir Hossein" and "Down with the dictator".
We went back to Alborz College. The situation in Revolution Street was a real civil war. With one of my friends, we helped people to use special cables to close off the street so that the motorcyclists could not attack us. I suddenly saw that [some] people had taken a hostage and were bringing him towards the crowd. They had been successful in arresting one of the riot police. They chose a house opposite Alborz College to serve as a prison, so that those arrested could be kept there. From then on the arrests of agents and the basiji by the people started. They were arresting them, taking their uniforms off and taking their weapons away, and then after giving them a good beating, would put them in the house. Many shields, batons, riot police uniforms and helmets fell into the hands of the people.
We went back to Hafez Street and slowly, together with the crowd, we moved towards the north. Because of a police attack and the firing of tear gas, two friends (both female comrades) and I were separated from the group and continued on our own. Clashes continued in front of Amir Kabir [University]. People had got hold of the drums of mourning squads and were beating the drums and chanting slogans. A police [vehicle] had got stuck in the traffic jam. Everyone began throwing stones towards it. The police were terrified and could not believe what was happening. Then the police were forced to get out, stripped of their uniforms and beaten, their weapons seized and their vehicle set on fire. At the Taleghani and Hafez junction there were other violent clashes, the people were under the bridge, and police on the bridge, [using] stones as the tools in the clashes. They [the police] would throw stones from the top of the bridge and we would throw them from under the bridge. We continued along Hafez Street until we reached the end of Hafez Bridge. The police were still on the bridge. People were stamping their feet on the ground and chanting slogans so as to scare the police. The path of the police was quickly blocked with park benches, traffic signs, rubbish bins and sand bags. Sand was spread out on the rest of the street so that it would be slippery and dangerous for the police motorcycles. Slogans against the Islamic Republic, Khamenei, and sometimes in support of Mir Hossein [Mousavi] continued. We reached Karimkhan-e Zand Street and we were supposed to go towards Haft-e Tir, but several vans full of armed police were parked there, so the crowd decided to move towards Vali-e Asr Square. On the way I saw an interesting incident, a family of three - the mother, the father and the son - were taking souvenir photos with the shields and batons that had been seized from the police! Suddenly, because of a provocative move by the police, the people attacked the several vans that were full of riot police. At first they were stoning them from a distance of several meters. Then they got closer and took all of them out of the van and set it alight. As with other times before they seized their uniforms and weapons and shields. To close off street the people had ripped out a part of the fence of Karimkhan Boulevard. It looked as if a tank had gone through this street. All the streets were full of stones. We, together with the people, were attacking towards Vali-e Asr Square, when we witnessed one of the most brutal attacks by the police. Police vans fitted with bull bars sped towards the crowd. A girl was run over by one of these vans, and possibly a man as well. It was a brutal attack. We were forced to run away with some of the people, when we suddenly discovered that we are stuck in a dead-end. The police and basij attacked the people in that alley. One of our friends was severely injured in the head and the knee. We tried everything to get ourselves into a house. … we escaped the blockade by the basijis through a small exit and got ourselves to Vali-e Asr Square. But there was nothing going on, the people had dispersed.
We had a bit of a rest, it was past 2pm. We began heading towards the square to find one of our friends. The rally of the basij motorcyclists had started. They were moving in Karimkhan Street and around Vali-e Asr Square, and shouting. They were attacking people on the pavements. … Then we returned to where we had been protesting in the morning. We were all fine and had not been arrested. We decide to have a rest and then to go to Mirdamad Street, Mohseni Square, for sham-e ghariban [a religious dinner ceremony] protests.
Before we went towards Mirdamad, we decided to go to Freedom Street [Khiyaban-e Azadi] … to also see the situation there. Freedom Street and Revolution Street were full of smashed glass, stones in the middle of the street, burning rubbish bins, smouldering motorcycles and masses of riot police - who were tired and worn-out and standing in line along the street. Gradually the time for manoeuvres of the basij and riot police had started. They were milling around the streets and shouting (especially the basij). It is interesting that at the height of the clashes in Revolution Street and Freedom Street the basij did not dare to enter the fray. But to keep their spirits up after the streets were quiet clear, they came to show themselves and brag in the empty streets.
When we reached Mohseni Square, there was such a heavy police and basij presence there that it wasn’t possible to stop for a few minutes. We walked around [the area] for a while. We were told that the body of Mir Hossein Mousavi’s nephew had been taken to Ibn-e Sina Hospital in west Tehran and that there were clashes there. We went there ourselves. It was around 9:30pm. People were leaving, but there were many police and basiji in the area and near the hospital. There were pieces of clothing such as scarves, hats and jackets on the ground in the surrounding streets. It was obvious that there had been violent clashes.
Finally we went home. But the rebellious atmosphere that I saw does not want to go home!
See also: Iran: Power slipping to streets
