12 Iranian students killed in demonstrations

Iran: 12 students reported killed in crackdown after violent clashes

At least 12 people may have died in violent clashes with Iran’s security forces following President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election, ­according to reports from the country.

The reported fatalities have come amid a brutal crackdown on students, apparently aimed at quelling a wave of campus rebellions that authorities fear could spill over to the wider population.

A Farsi website, Balatarin, carried an unconfirmed report that seven people had been killed in the southern city of Shiraz following confrontations with riot police at the local university. Five busloads of plainclothes officers had been sent to confront the demonstrators during Sunday’s protests, but were said to have been unable to prevent them from being joined by members of the public and marching to one of the city’s main squares. It is unclear whether all those said to have died were students.

The Guardian understands that five students may also have died in clashes at Tehran University early on Sunday. The students – named as Fatemeh Barati, Kasra Sharafi, Mobina Ehterami, Kambiz Shoaee and Mohsen Imani – are believed to have been buried today in Behesht-e-Zahra, a famous cemetery in Tehran, reportedly without their families being informed.

The BBC has video of today’s protests.

Over the weekend, hatred, chaos and savage beatings; women are among the demonstrators:

On several occasions I saw female Moussavi supporters plead with their male counterparts not to run away. But they almost always did. They were clearly intimidated by the brutal show of force.

For current photos, don’t miss Picfog:

UPDATE
Via ¡No Pasarán!, Javier Solana of the EU “expresses concern” over the situation:

And here in the US,
State Dep’t refuses to condemn Iranian crackdown:

Obama didn’t bother holding any meetings or conference calls about this yesterday. Remember: Health care is a “crisis.” This is but a “situation.”