It was meant to be an event when Iranians unite to honour one of Shia Islam's most revered martyrs. Instead, it turned into a day of bloodshed that left at least nine people dead, many more injured and the country facing a potentially unbridgeable political divide amid an escalating cycle of violence.
The Shia mourning ceremony of Ashura became a confrontation between Iran's torn political factions when the government unleashed a furious crackdown on pro-opposition protesters that included orders to open fire.
Witnesses were still reporting the sounds of gunfire in Tehran last night after a day in which at least five protesters in the city were killed and many more injured in the most violent clashes between opposition supporters and security forces in months. Four more were killed in the northern city of Tabriz, a stronghold of the reformist leader, Mir Hossein Mousavi, whose nephew was among those reportedly shot dead in Tehran.
More than 300 arrests were confirmed, amid reports of violent clashes in cities and towns across Iran."
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