More clashes taking place in Tehran

OMID Habibinia, an Iranian journalist living in Switzerland, reports on his Twitter feed that he is hearing from sources in Tehran that more clashes were taking place on Thursday (June 25), as opposition supporters attempt to rally. Habibinia writes, inter alia:

• Anti-Riot Police get position in Vali Asr Cr and Enghelab St.
• Clashes at Enghalb Sq. 16 minutes ago
• Reports: More than 1000 ppl chanting against regime asking others join then near Taleghani Cr.
• Hezbollah attacking passengers at Enghelab St. Avoiding to gathter in one place…
• Army helicopters flying over protesters at Enghelab Sq.
• Somebody wrote me: "I will be in demo soon, if I shoot dead please pay for “bullets fee” and take my body out!
• Reports: Some people arrested at Vali Aasr Sq.
• Anti-Riot police making blockage at Azadi St, Jamalzadeh Junc.
  

COMMENT: In the days following the election on June 12, millions of Iranian citizens organized and poured into the streets. The regime was intent on showing an iron fist. The Basij, the most loyal anti-riot armed force of the Islamic Republic, opened fire on the protesters. Several hundred high- and middle-ranking political leaders were arrested. Activists' means of communication, including cellphones, instant messaging and many Web sites were shut down. So were election headquarters throughout the country. When resistance continued, the armed Basij started attacking homes and making arrests in the middle of the night. Official prisons quickly filled. In order to detain more people, the regime started to use unofficial prisons, such as the basement of the Interior Ministry.
Iranians haveresponded to all this massive physical and psychological warfare with a determination not seen since the 1979 revolution. Mass demonstrations began spontaneously outside the capital and in other cities and urban centers, forcing some of the deployed Basij to return to their home bases.
Divisions appearing within Revolutionary Guard units are most troubling for the regime. There are reports that the chief of the Tehran unit, Ali Fazli, is now under arrest. Other reports point to a rebellion brewing within Revolutionary Guards forces in Lavizan, northeast of Tehran. At least one report claimed that 16 leading Guard members were arrested for refusing to shoot protesters.
Now, a general strike is brewing. The national mourning for vicxtims will be the focus of the revolutionaries for the next few days. Then, a new countrywide challenge to the regime will take center stage. The revolution's main problem is lack of communication with its leadership. As such, progress is slow and the course will undoubtedly be protracted.
The coming weeks will test the regime's power. Another coup from within may be the shortest and least violent way to end the Islamic Republic. In any case, the revolution will likely go on.

Anti-Israel protestors in clashes near US Embassy

LEBANESE security forces fired tear gas and water cannons at dozens of angry demonstrators who protested near the US embassy over Israel's war on the Gaza Strip.
Lebanese and Palestinian leftists of various political groups broke through barbed wire down the street from the embassy and neared the next barricade to the mission compound in Awkar, just north of Beirut. Several demonstrators, who were calling for the expulsion of the US ambassador, were hurt in the clashes.
Protestors burned dummies of US President George W. Bush, US President-elect Barack Obama and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as well as American and Israeli flags.
COMMENT: Lebanon is generally calm, but fragile. For visitors and foreign residents, we advise against all travel to Palestinian camps and against all but essential travel to Tripoli as well as south of the Litani. The security situation can deteriorate rapidly and anyone travelling to Lebanon should keep themselves well informed and closely monitor political and security developments. There is a high threat from terrorism in Lebanon. Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places frequented by expatriates and foreign travellers such as hotels and restaurants.
On Thursday 8 January and Wednesday 14 January, rockets were launched from southern Lebanon into northern Israel; citizens were injured in the first attack. On both occasions Israel responded with artillery fire towards the source in southern Lebanon. We advise anyone travelling to the region to be vigilant and follow local updates and advice.

Terror attacks grip Mumbai, over 100 dead

A WELL planned and executed terrorist attack on Mumbai (formerly Bombay) has virtually locked down the financial and entertainment capital of India. Gunmen began an assault on various locations around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, armed with AK-47s and grenades, among other weapons. Initial media estimates put the death toll at more than 100, with 250 or more injured.
The terrorists were attempting to track and separate out American and British nationals, security sources said. At least one Briton was killed and seven injured in the attacks. There were no immediate reports of any American casualties.
The terrorists call themselves the Deccan Mujaheddin, a shadowy group that claimed previous terror campaigns in India, and which intelligence sources say are possibly linked to Al-Qaida. The coordinated nature of the attacks suggests a sophisticated group typical of Al-Qaida.
They attacked the following targets - Taj Hotel located near Gate of India; Oberoi Hotel; Trident hotel; CST Railway station; Cama Hospital; Café Leopold restaurant in Colaba; a taxi on Dockyard Road in Mazgaon.
The three hotels were evacuated and surrounded by police. Explosions and gunfire were reported at all three, and video footage has shown wounded being removed from the scene at one of the hotels. The Cama Hospital incident appears to have been gunshots fired, and the taxi incident appears to have been an explosion in a car that killed three people.
Police were reported to have cornered two gunmen armed with AK-47s in the CST railway station. The was a hostage situation involving at least some foreigners at the Trident, Oberoi, and Taj hotels. Gunmen were reported going door-to-door within hotels seeking U.S. and UK passport holders.

Thailand protests bring air-travel chaos

AROUND a dozen states have issued travel warnings and their airlines have canceled flights to Thailand after protestors stormed Bangkok and other airports today, stranding thousands of travelers and dealing a blow to the country's tourism industry during the peak season.
With the unrest paralyzing the airport, which handles 40 million passengers a year, and TV networks broadcasting the chaos worldwide, the damage is likely to be severe.
Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport was shut down after thousands of protesters, dressed in yellow to symbolize loyalty to Thailand's king, stormed the complex.
Late Wednesday night Thailand's Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat went on television to reject his army chief's call that he step down to end the crisis. He said his government was "an elected democracy under constitutional monarchy," adding "my position is not important, but democratic values are."
Earlier, Army commander Gen. Anupong Paochinda urged Somchai to call new elections.
COMMENT: The states that have warned against travel to Thailand or canceled flights so far are Denmark, France, Netherlands, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Phillipines, Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam.
The airport takeover is the latest escalation in a sometimes violent four-month campaign by the People's Alliance for Democracy to topple Wongsawat's government, which they claim is a puppet for ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra. The billionaire businessman turned populist politician was deposed by the military in a 2006 coup following months of street protests against his alleged corruption and abuse of power.
Our reports indicate that protesters are currently at both Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang airports. Protesters at Suvarnabhumi airport have blocked some taxi cab access on the main road to the airport.

Skepticism over China's anti-Islamist drive

CHINESE officials have been issuing a flurry of victory claims against Islamic terrorist groups, as part of a crackdown on those it accuses of targeting next month's Olympic Games. Police in the Muslim Xinjiang region claim to have demolished a dozen terror cells linked to foreign-based organizations, so far this year. The latest report didn't say how many people had been detained, but described members of the cells as "jobless drifters or ex-convicts."

COMMENT: Recently authorities said they had detained more than 80 suspected Islamic terrorists and separatists in the first six months across Xinjiang. The suspects were specifically engaged in plots to target the Olympic Games, a police official told state media.
In the absence of details or evidence, independent analysts remain skeptical that the campaign is more window-dressing than substance. One police report identified some groups involved as the East Turkistan Islamic Movement, or ETIM, along China's borders with Afghanistan and Pakistan and reportedly linked to al-Qaida; and Hizb ut-Tahrir, which originated in the Middle East in the 1950s, and is banned in several countries.
Radicals among Xinjiang's indigenous Turkic Uighur people have been fighting Chinese rule for decades, although critics say communist authorities fuel resentment in the region with harsh repression and strict rules governing cultural and religious expression.
However, ordinary criminals and nonviolent human rights campaigners are often labeled terrorists, while state media say raids target "illegal religious schools" and "jihad training centers." Human rights groups claim that China is ratcheting up security and repression ahead of the August games.