The city governor, accompanied by a large number of the Pasdaran (the Guards Corps), went to the scene to disperse the crowd. Protesters, however, poured out onto the streets and began to march toward the governor office. Thousands of people quickly joined them.
The crowd, swelling to 10,000 people, began chanting slogans against Khamenei and Rafsanjani and attacked the home of the city's Friday Prayer leader, Bana'i, and the governor's office. As a result, both sustained heavy damage.
To prevent the spread of the protest, the regime dispatched Fars province's State Security Forces, commanded by captain Qassemi and Lieutenant Masdour, and the Guards' special anti-riot units to confront the angry throng. The Guards opened fire, wounding a number of the protesters.
The demonstration continued until 10:00 P.M. and at least 120 were arrested. The names of 14 of the detainees are as follows: Akbar Alireza'i, Atta'ollah Dehghanfar, Khodadad Nikbakht, Assadollah Ibrahimzadeh, son of Ibrahim; Mansour Khorami, son of Abbas-Ali; Azim Kamali, son of Mirza; Amin-Reza Tavakoli, son of Ali; Nazar Tavakoli, son of Samad; Kourosh Jangali, son Mohammd Hussein; Javad Ma'ssoumi, son of Hussein; Abdolazim Tavakoli, son of Safar; Sadeq Lahouti, son of Massoud; Hadi Tavakoli, son of Shahpour; and Ibrahim Sabet, son of Abbas.
Reports say the unrest is continuing in the city. Special Guards Corps forces have taken control and engaged in widespread arrests.
On Friday, thousands of Tabriz residents had also staged a protest. At least 100 were arrested by the Pasdaran.
The Iranian Resistance appeals to international human rights organizations to immediately intervene to secure the safety and release of those arrested in demonstrations in recent days.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran - Paris April 25, 1996
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