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Iranian Opposition: Security Forces Clash With Protesters in Central Iran


Iranian opposition groups say security forces have clashed with supporters of a late dissident cleric in two cities in the central part of the country.

Opposition Web sites say the security forces cracked down Wednesday on rallies in memory of Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri in his birthplace of Najafabad and in nearby Isfahan.

The reports say police in Isfahan fired tear gas and used batons to disperse reformists, arresting more than 50 of them and injuring many others. They say security forces in the city also surrounded the house of a leading reformist cleric, Ayatollah Jalaleddin Taheri.

Opposition groups say Iranian police also fought in Najafabad with reformists who chanted anti-government slogans.

The reports could not be independently confirmed because Iran has banned foreign media from covering protests directly.

Ayatollah Montazeri died early Sunday in the holy city of Qom at the age of 87. He was considered a spiritual patron of Iran's reformist movement and was a strong critic of the nation's conservative clerical establishment.

Opposition groups said hundreds of thousands of mourners joined a funeral procession for the ayatollah in Qom Monday that evolved into a major anti-government protest. Government supporters in Qom staged a smaller counter demonstration on Tuesday.

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