Several Iran opposition websites said that anti-government demonstrations had started in parts of Tehran on Sunday, as police said large numbers of security forces were deployed in the capital.
"Police fired tear gas as a cat-and-mouse game (between police and demonstrators) began in Vali Asr Square,'' the Rahesabz.net said citing witnesses.
Crowds of demonstrators were also gathering in other squares and some streets, shouting "Allahu Akar'' (God is Greatest), the Sahamnews.org website of opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi, said.
No demonstrations were reported by Iran's broadcast media or news agencies, while foreign media have been banned from covering any opposition gatherings.
Tehran traffic police chief Hossein Rahimi confirmed to the state news agency IRNA that security forces were deployed in the capital.
"Traffic was heavy in some roads due to the presence of police and special forces,'' Rahimi said, but added that no part of Tehran was blocked and no traffic restrictions were imposed.
"The traffic was flowing,'' he said.
The demonstrations were called by a group owing allegience to opposition leaders Karroubi and Mir Hossein Mousavi.
The group, Council for Coordination of Green Movement Hope, posted the call for gatherings on Sunday on several opposition websites to mark the seventh day after the killing of two people in protests in Tehran on Monday.
Those protests, which saw demonstrators clash with security forces, were the first since Feburary last year when the authorities marked the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution.
Nine security personnel were injured, officials and websites said.
Anti-government protests erupted in Iran after a June 2009 presidential election, in which Mousavi and Karroubi, both candidates, charged that the incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was fraudulently re-elected.
Source: AFP
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