Moussavi gone missing in Iran

Opposition leader Mir Hussein Moussavi is missing, according to his daughters, amid what the New York Times

is calling "rising tensions" in Iran:

The daughters of the missing opposition leader, Mir Hussein Moussavi, told an opposition Web site that they had had no word from either of their parents since Tuesday and feared they had been detained. Security forces have surrounded their home, and all communications have been cut.

On Wednesday, the Web site of another opposition leader, Mehdi Karroubi, reported that the house of his eldest son had been raided and damaged by security officers seeking to arrest him.

Calls have intensified from Iran's Parliament and judiciary for the prosecution of both men, who have been accused repeatedly of waging war against God, a crime that carries the death penalty. This week, as the opposition revived in solidarity with uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, law markers in Parliament called for them to be hanged.

An opposition group, the Green Path of Hope, issued a call through the opposition Web site Jaras for supporters to take to the streets on Sunday to remember the deaths of two protesters in this week, as well those of "other martyrs of the green movement."

In a state with such a mammoth security apparatus, it is not likely that we will see the kinds of protests that erupted following Ahmadinejad's stolen election. The physical courage it takes to face down the guns of police, Rev Guards, and Basij is not lacking, but organization appears to be a problem. As long as the authorities can shut off the internet, mobile phones, and other means of communication, the protestors will have a very difficult time organizing a mass movement.

Would the Iranians dare charge Moussavi and others with treason? Considering that the Iranian government appears to be immune to international outrage, I would guess that the days of freedom for opposition leaders are numbered.




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