Opposition supporter in Tehran
Photo: AP
Neda Agha Soltan, killed by officers
Photo: AFP
Video: Iranian police shoot at protesters
New video of Tehran's street protests posted on YouTube shows Basij officers firing at civilians protesting against election result. One woman can be heard saying, 'Killers, it's like in Palestine'
A video documenting an incident in which the Iranian security forces used live fire to disperse protesters against the country's presidential election results last month has been circulating over the internet in recent days.
The video was apparently filmed in recent weeks in Tehran from a balcony of one of the houses in the city.
Assessment
Dudi Cohen
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The security officer fires three bullets, and signals with his hand for the protesters to leave the area. The officer then notices an apparent hit and flees the scene with the other security officers.
The cameraman then focuses on the injured young man lying on the road. Five other youths come to his aide, but then another gunshot in the air is heard.
A young woman standing on the balcony with the cameraman can be seen crying in the background and calling the officers "murderers" and "crazy".
Omid Habibinia, an Iranian blogger living abroad clamed the video was filmed on June 20, the same day Iranian forces shot dead protester Neda Agha Soltan who has since become a symbol of the struggle.
Habibinia's claims, however, have not been verified.
During the incident caught on tape cries can be heard from protesters across the street, and one woman on the balcony can be heard telling her friends that what was going on is "like in Palestine".
The video also shows security forces fleeing by foot, while people in the street chase them in an attempt to catch them.
This is not the first attempt in Iran to catch people suspected of such shootings, as happened in the case of Neda's suspected killer.
Even after the security forces, most likely part of the Basij, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards militia, flee the scene, gunshots continue, and the youth on the balcony go inside for fear for their lives.
