bearingwitnessforiran

new videos and photos from Iran

2009-06-20T11:05:00.000-07:00

Videos;

on the streets

jamalzade street

tazahorat

also in the streets

view from the rooftop

The following videos are very graphic: decide whether you really want to see them. Remember that what is seen can not be unseen:

graphic: one girl shot dead

another person shot

very graphic: girl dies in front of camera

dead young man on the streets

photos:

smoke in the streets

militiaman

basij on motorbikes

basij waiting for crowd

basij waiting for crowd II

A roundup of videos

2009-06-20T01:37:00.000-07:00

Today is an important day - this mean Iranian sources won't have much time to upload much material. I'll try to get as much as there is though. Remember: this is for us to bear witness to - the violence of the supressors, and also the courage of those who stand up to them. Download, save and spread as much as you can.

In the meantime, it seems the resistance is organizing itself and growing stronger, according to this letter:

Sometime on Tuesday, small urban gangs began organizing within themselves, and, armed with melee weapons and small caliber firearms, began hunting down and attacking Besiji. They are being called, amongst themselves somewhat and by the members of Anonymous and other forum assistants, the National Iranian Resistance, or NIR. We know that as NIR were seen to be an asset to the Iranian people, as they offered protection from Besiji and knew the streets of their cities intimately, they began receiving support in the form of information from many older Iranian citizens, such as shop owners and business people. Due to their spontaneous formation, the Resistance has, as of now, no centralized governing body, tending to operating on a tightly knit cellular level. We are at this time unsure of where the Besiji that are being detained by the Resistance are being taken.
The members of the Resistance do this at great risk to themselves. There are many reports of groups of Besiji and Resistance encountering each other, and the Resistance being killed on sight. Additionally, when NIR are found by Pasdarna troops (Also known as the IRG, IRGC, Iranian Revolutionary Guard (Corps)) they are arrested. Where they are taken is currently unknown.
On Wednesday morning, Supreme Ayatollah Khamenei authorized the following individuals complete control to suppress all protest movements in 1 week (June 24th, 2009.) Afshin Kamel, Haj Ali Rezaei, Ali Afsari, Majid Afshardi Amir Ghorbani, Amir Maghouli, Amir Hossein Arich, Mehdi Amiri, Hossein Yabgar, Ilias Dizji, Ebrahim Mahmoodi, Mehdi Ebrahimi, Mehdi Ebrahimi Fereidoon Taghizadeh, and Mahmoud Fatehi. Most of the above are officers within the Pasdarna, of varying ranks. 
In response, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, which is the armed forces sanctioned by the constitution of Iran, have taken measures to protect the people of Iran, and the sanctity of the Republic. Those measures have included arresting Besiji militants, as well as patrolling the streets of various cities, focusing on Tehran, almost continually since Wednesday afternoon until the time of writing, Saturday morning. As they have been ordered, they have taken many Resistance members into custody, however they are yet to turn any over to Pasdarna forces. At this point, that is close to a direct defiance of orders from the Supreme Leader.
At some point after the Army began pursuing Besiji leads, with the combined efforts of the Resistance, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army's leading officers began telling top politicians, including Khamenei himself, that they plead for no violence, or they will be forced to carry out their constitutional duty and fullfil their oath, protecting the people of Iran. They cite Article 143 of the Iranian Constitution.
Additionally, they state that Ahmadinejad personally violated Article 145 of the Iranian Constitution by using foreign forces against citizens of Iran. As of Thursday evening, both Palestinian Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah were known to be aiding the Revolutionary Guard.
Finally, they have the legal support granted by Articles 3.6, 38, and 39 to stop any attempted coup d'etat against the Republic. While not publically acknowledged, it is implied that they are accusing Khamenei and Ahmadinejad, as well as the Pasdarna, of attempting to seize total control over the Republic of Iran.
Friday morning, prior to the prayers and Khamenei's speech, the National Iranian Resistance leaders of various areas began asking for the Iranian Army to assist them in protecting the Iranian people on Saturday.
They also warn that if Khamenei is removed from his seat by political and clerical action by the clerics in Qom, and another Supreme Ayatollah is appointed, it may result in Ahmadinejad and the above named Iranians seizing full control of Iran.
It is suspected that on the protests at Saturday, June 20th, 2009, to be held at 4pm, across the cities of Iran, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army will not have the strength to defend all protests and protesters from the combined threat of Besiji and Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces. The National Iranian Resistance have shared that they are going to attend protests and do what they can to protect people from military action, however they have very little military experience and acknowledge that flaw. Additionally, members of the Resistance with clerical experience will be with the protesters, providing them with the guidance and protection of God, an additional disobedience to the will of Khamenei.
 
 
Published at 12:39, Saturday, June 20th, 2009 [Iranian Time]
The above document was written by ProtesterHelp, available on twitter at http://twitter.com/ProtesterHelp and e-mail at ph.on.twitter@gmail.com. Please share this with whoever you feel would be interested. 

The videos:

Older video showing student leader protesting Ah-jad before the elections

from yesterday, Basi shoot down protesters - protesters continue

from yesterday night: Basij are rioting and killing people, filmed by a women from the rooftops who is crying

pictures:
A very graphic picture of dead protester

The day before saturday

2009-06-19T15:20:00.000-07:00

Today, Khamenei held a chilling speech - the Sea of Green should back down and everyone should accept Ahmedinejad, or else...

That "else" is creeping closer minute by minute. Hear what one Iranian woman asks herself in the dark of the night

here is the translation of what she says:

Tomorrow is Saturday. Tomorrow is (inaudible).

Tonight, the cries of Allah-o Akbar are heard louder and louder than the nights before.

Where is this place? Where is this place where every door is closed? Where is this place where people are simply calling God? Where is this place where the sound of Allah-o Akbar gets louder and louder?

I wait every night to see if the sounds will get louder and whether the number increases. It shakes me. I wonder if God is shaken.

Where is this place that where so many innocent people are entrapped? Where is this place where no one comes to our aid? Where is this place that only with our silence we are sending our voices to the world? Where is this place that the young shed blood and then people go and pray -- standing on that same blood and pray. Where is this place where the citizens are called vagrants?

Where is this place? You want me to tell you? This place is Iran. The homeland of you and me.
This place is Iran.

a round-up of today's videos and photos

2009-06-18T14:25:00.000-07:00

I have to work sometimes, that's why I didn't provide more updates - but here are a lot of today's videos and photos todays events in Iran. Download and save them - bear witness - then spread them - don't let people get away with violence.

Videos:

A Massive Mourning rally in Teheran they're singing an unnoficial national anthem.

An entire youtube channel dedicated to videos from Iran

The Neave is collecting videos of violence and abuse. Download - bear witness

Demonstrations in Shiraz

Mousavi in Teheran

Incredible numbers of people, incredibly silent protest in Teheran

Fire and protest in the streets of Shiraz

Pictures:

A lot of pictures from BBC Persia

Picture report from the Guardian

From Mousavi1388 photostream

Riots in teheran-stream - some peaceful but some violent.

Photos from Iran, rigged election

Karoubi amongst the protesters

Who killed this young man?

Silent demonstration

NYT slideshow

Silent protest in teheran

new videos from iran from various sources:

2009-06-17T07:43:00.000-07:00

via Ireport: destroyed dorms

streetprotests

Student protest in Esfahan

and some pictures:

protests

the iranian football team wears green at the match today

wounded man

dailykos shows how the pro-ahmedinejad protests were fotoshopped

a whole gallery of pics from yesterday and before

Some of the pictures are bad, but some of them are also just of peaceful protest - luckily!

I will need to go to sleep now

2009-06-16T17:20:00.001-07:00

But others will carry on. Please take the time to visit these sites:

revolutionary road

National Iranian American Council

Sign the UN petition

and check out what Anonymous is doing!

more pictures

2009-06-16T16:51:00.000-07:00

ruined dorms

new videos

2009-06-16T15:37:00.000-07:00

new videos on twitter:

BAsij attacking

Wounded people

pictures

2009-06-16T15:02:00.000-07:00

http://twitpic.com/7kins

http://twitpic.com/7kim4

http://twitpic.com/7kiki

http://twitpic.com/7kijb

http://twitpic.com/7kiic

http://twitpic.com/7ki6e

http://twitpic.com/7khkw

http://twitpic.com/7khjc

http://twitpic.com/7khi0

http://twitpic.com/7khgt

http://twitpic.com/7khen

http://twitpic.com/7khdm

http://twitpic.com/7khdm

http://twitpic.com/7khak

http://twitpic.com/7kh9a

http://twitpic.com/7kh7p

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fhashemi/3632971685/in/set-72157619758530748/

Why Bearingwitness?

2009-06-16T14:22:00.000-07:00

Twitter is down for maintenance, time to explain a bit more about this idea.

I've been following the updates on #iranelection since sunday and wanted to help, even though I live far away from Iran. Some of the images and videos were incredibly gut-wrenching, and the idea that an entire generation is rising now to cast off the yoke of tyranny, was awe-inspiring.

But after following #iranelection for a while, I thought of a few things:

1. There is a lot of crap in the tweetstream. Companies using the #iranelection-tag to market their own websites, people disseminating false information, and not-up-to-date information. All of this takes away our attention from what's twitters strength: up-to-date and realtime footage from events in iran as they unfold. So, I wanted to actively repost all the relevant information and disseminate it as far as possible.

2. Many people upload videos and photos about what's happening. These loose the risk of drowning in the tweetstream, and if they they don't drawn, they run the risk of being removed by the regime's information police. Yet these videos are terribly important: the more we see them, the more the efforts of those few brave souls posting them are worthwhile. We see the violence, we see the oppression - we see them bleed and yes, we see them die as well. Horrible footage, but it needs to be seen.

It needs to be seen because by seeing it we know the regime for who the are: terrible brutes. Horrible opressors who do not hesitate to beat women, to shoot randomly in a crowd, arrest people randomly. They say that "what is seen can not be unseen" - and that is exactly what bearing witness is all about. Witnessing, seeing, knowing the truth.

That's why I try to post as many youtube videos as I can. And I urge you to do the same: save and spread the links to youtubevideos, twitpics, flickr-streams, whatever. Every image, every snippet of info helps us to see what is going on there.

Also, while you're at it: please download the video. It might well be that the videos will be taken down by the regime as soon as they are uploaded. Capture the videos, store them on your harddisk and re-upload them whenever you see fit.

Thanks for bearing witness.

photo's & videos - new

2009-06-16T13:25:00.000-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30972409@N06/

videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFdT2z7F-Ao

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cAtGjlVBNU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvenQ5bHzg4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbUg7CKTHVw&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ldBSTpv2WU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nQV9wnMZDs&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9jJw4vgoxs&feature=related

pictures from iran

2009-06-16T13:18:00.001-07:00

http://friendfeed.com/palize/86962f5f/2

http://nl.tinypic.com/view.php?pic=2i1do90&s=5

Please save as much of the videos as you can

2009-06-16T13:06:00.000-07:00

They are invaluable in showing the crimes of the regime

Here's how to save videos: go to http://keepvid.com copy the link, click download and then rightclick download in the menu below

recap of video material from Iran

2009-06-16T10:17:00.000-07:00

here's a round-up of recent videos from iran:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9YPxJajpG8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWM6jMn2p38

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BM0sXeZREg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSNizjlHWVo&eurl=http%3A%2F%2F

Bearing witness for iran

2009-06-16T09:38:00.001-07:00

We will start posting eyewitness material about the unrest in Iran. Please spread it around.