Thousands rally in downtown L.A. for regime change in Iran
By Ebrahim Noroozi 11 November, 2012
A mob of protesters, mostly from Iran, in front of the United Nations headquarters in downtown Los Angeles, has been called “the L.A. protest movement” by the Iranian government and by its propaganda organs. Thousands of the mob turned out in downtown and marched to the Iranian consulate in Los Angeles.
A mob of protesters, mostly from Iran, in front of the United Nations headquarters in downtown Los Angeles, has been called “the L.A. protest movement” by the Iranian government and by its propaganda organs.
Thousands of the mob turned out in downtown and marched to the Iranian consulate in Los Angeles. They carried pictures of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and shouted in a strong voice: “Down with the dictator. Down with the dictator!” The Iranian government in Tehran has not condemned the demonstration or its violent character. The protest, which began at the UN at around 2 pm local time (6 pm, GMT, on Friday) is being attended by a mass of thousands, as well as by thousands on both sides of the border.
An Iranian consulate official, Saeed Rezvani, said at a news conference that it was an “act of civil disobedience … to expose the true nature of the regime and the crimes of the regime.” The official, whose name was not published, said that the demonstrators intended to go all the way to UN headquarters. Rezvani said he was happy about the demonstration, which he saw as “a great step in the process.”
The demonstrators, however, were peaceful. They chanted “Iran” and “Down with the dictator” as they marched to the consulate. There, protesters from both the United States and Iran were joined by foreign nationals. Protesters from Iran marched from the consulate to the U.S. consulate, which is also in Los Angeles.
Demonstrators from the Iranian border city of Abadan, who were joined by a group of youths from Tehran who were protesting the arrest of their country’s top nuclear scientist, Ali Akbar Velayati, tried to breach the U.S. consulate, but were blocked by security personnel.
The demonstrators then marched to the office of U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice. Rice
