On Saturday June 4, memorial services for Ezzat and Haleh Sahabi were to be held at Hosseiniyeh Ershad Center.
The memorial services were prevented by security forces. These forces included police, Plainclothes, special forces and a new breed of suppressive forces.
Who are these new forces being used to crackdown on people?
These new suppressive forces consisted of a number of young men, wearing similar clothing, bussed in and stationed in front of Hosseiniyeh Ershad.
These sun tanned young men with crew cuts , were all wearing denim pants, sports shoes, short sleeved tee- shirts and neon vests. One of the Plainclothes men did a roll call from a roster after the young men got off the buses.
Seeing these new forces raises the question: Who are these men? Have they been brought from prisons to be used as suppressive forces? Are they part of the group of recently arrested thugs and hoodlums or are they from the youth correctional facility?
The more important question here is: Who organizes and brings these young men to the streets.
During the crackdown of protesters in 2009, protesters were violently confronted by forces that used profanity. This reminds us of the Police Commander’s suggestion that thugs and hoodlums should be used to crackdown on protesters.
On Saturday June 4, these forces were stationed every 10 meters on Shariati street, from Housseinyeh Ershad to Zafar street. They were wearing dark green clothing and were moving around creating a fearful atmosphere.
Near Hooseinyeh Ershad, two women were standing by a parked car when forces attacked the car and pulled off it’s licence plate. They also beat some young men who were on the sidewalk with batons.
On the other side of the street, an old man standing in a bus station was hit on the head with a helmet by a police officer. A bit further down the street, special forces confronted a girl who resisted their force, they tore her head scarf off of her head.
Today the oppressive forces, the new and the usual forces, were ruling the streets, but fear and lack of self confidence could easily be seen on their faces.
persianbanoo 