Iranians mark 1999 unrest despite govt warning

Iranian police fired tear-gas Thursday as hundreds of demonstrators defied government warnings and staged a march to commemorate the anniversary of bloody student unrest in 1999, witnesses said.

Protestors chanted "Death to the dictator" as they moved towards Tehran University, the epicentre of the violence 10 years ago.

Police detained several people among hundreds of protesters who turned up near Tehran University in defiance of a ban on gatherings for the anniversary of violent student demonstrations in 1999.

Police in riot gear had been out in force to try to stifle any gathering as the authorities remained on tenterhooks following the wave of protests over last month's hotly disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinjad that saw hundreds of thousands take to the streets.

It appeared to be the worst outbreak of unrest in Tehran since security forces last month quelled days of opposition protests over the June 12 election, which moderate opponents of Ahmadinejad say was rigged in his favor.

Even though Thursday's rally was a far cry from those that erupted after the vote, it was a sign of continuing discontent among at least some opposition supporters.

Iranian authorities had warned of a harsh response to any commemoration of the 1999 violence in which at least student was killed and dozens wounded when hardline vigilantes stormed student dormitories, according to an official toll.

The warning was issued after the G8 world powers expressed "serious concern" over the last month's post-election which left at least 20 people dead.

Groups of students have held small commemorative gatherings in previous years, but Tehran governor Morteza Tamadon issued a blunt warning for this year's anniversary.

"If some people make moves that are contrary to security initiatives under the influence of anti-revolutionary networks, they will be trampled under the feet of our alert people," he told the official IRNA news agency.

Witnesses said leaflets had been distributed in several Tehran squares urging people to join Thursday's March.

If some people make moves that are contrary to security initiatives under the influence of anti-revolutionary networks, they will be trampled under the feet of our alert people

Morteza Tamadon, Tehran governor

Gatherings banned

Iranian authorities have banned all gatherings amid a fierce crackdown on protestors, reformists, journalists and political activists.

An Iranian employee of the British embassy and a French lecturer are also still being held, amid charges by the Islamic regime that Western governments have been interfering in the post-election disturbances, the most serious in its 30-year history.

The French ambassador to Tehran, Bernard Poletti, met lecturer Clotilde Reiss in Tehran's notorious Evin prison on Thursday and found her in "good physical condition," a diplomatic source told AFP.

"But she is rather preoccupied with what will happen next," the source added. The Frenchwoman stands accused of spying.

In a strongly worded statement on Tuesday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy dismissed the espionage allegation as "pure fantasy" and called for her immediate release.

Iran is also still holding one of nine British embassy local employees that it arrested late last month on suspicion of stoking the unrest in the Iranian capital.

Brits, French worse than U.S.

A top aide to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Thursday that Britain and France were "worse" than the United States when it comes to interfering in Iran?s internal affairs.

Ali Akbar Velayati, advisor to Khamenei on international affairs, accused Britain and France in particular of wanting to stop Iran's nuclear drive.

"Western nations, especially France and Britain, want Iran to stop its nuclear activities. They want a weak Iran at the negotiating table," Velayati told the Fars news agency. "

Global powers led by Washington suspect that Iran?s nuclear programme is aimed at making atomic weapons but Tehran denies the charge, saying it is designed to generate energy.

Western nations, especially France and Britain, want Iran to stop its nuclear activities. They want a weak Iran at the negotiating table

Ali Akbar Velayati, advisor to Khamenei

At a summit in Italy on Wednesday, the G8 issued a declaration expressing concern over the post-election violence but said they were determined to find a peaceful resolution to the nuclear standoff.

"G8 countries continued to be seriously concerned about recent events in Iran," it said. "Interference with media, unjustified detentions of journalists and recent arrests of foreign nationals are unacceptable."

In Iraq meanwhile, the U.S. military freed five Iranian diplomats it had held since January 2007 in another source of friction between Tehran and Washington. The military had accused them of arming militias and inciting anti-U.S. attacks, and refused to recognise their claim to diplomatic immunity.

G8 countries continued to be seriously concerned about recent events in Iran. Interference with media, unjustified detentions of journalists and recent arrests of foreign nationals are unacceptable

G8 declaration