Qom, Najafabad, and Isfahan Rocked by Protests; Regime's Fate Increasingly Uncertain Heading Into Ashura

Reports of escalting violence are coming out of the province and city of Isfahan. In Najafabad, birthplace of the Grand Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, government forces reportedly attacked crowds gathered to mourn the death of the late dissident cleric. The situation inside the city remains unclear, but some sources are describing the atmosphere as "tense" and "nearing revolt."

There is also word of clashes occurring in Isfahan, Iran's third largest city and former capital during the Safavid dynasty. Yesterday, security forces prevented Ayatollah Seyyed Jalaleldin Taheri from attending a memorial service being held for Ayatollah Montazeri in Seyyed Mosque. Taheri, who had organized the service, resigned from his post as Isfahan's Friday prayers leader in the wake of the 18 Tir attacks on Tehran University.  Revolutionary Guard and Basij agents apparently stopped his car by deploying roadblocks along the highway while he was en route to the service.

A crowd of demonstrators later gathered around Ayatollah Taheri's residence and was able to overpower the heavy police presence to enter his home. Teary-eyed, Taheri said that he had invited people to come to the mosque and was "ashamed to see [security forces] react this way to the memorial service held for a Source of Emulation," referring to Grand Ayotollah Montazeri. "I was aware of the [violent] situation taking place at Seyyed Mosque, and I did not hesitate for one moment to join the people. I tried to reach the ceremony from six different routes, but they closed each one after the other," he added.

Aside from preventing Ayatollah Taheri from attending the memorial service, security forces actually raided Seyyed Mosque and arrested at least 50 people mourning Montazeri's death, as well as a reporter and photojournalist of Mehr News agency. Three police vans took those arrested from the mosque to an undisclosed location.

As this comes amid the reported revolt in Sirjan yesterday, the situation inside the country is becoming increasingly tense. Word has it that the Supreme National Security Council has declared a state of emergency and called all armed forces to return to their stations by midnight, Tehran time. Now only four days away, Ashura may be the volcano that is waiting to erupt.