Update-Tehran streets mostly empty after protesters clash with police
UPDATE
Iranian security forces beat down and overcame thousands of protesters today-
Tehran, Iran (CNN) — Tens of thousands of demonstrators who marched in Tehran in defiance of the Iranian government were largely cleared from the city’s streets by nightfall.
Patrolling security forces had battled protesters with batons and tear gas for much of the day.
The wave of people who marched along Revolution Avenue on Monday had remained largely silent as they walked toward the capital’s Azadi Square, though at times they clashed with Iranian security forces who tried to disperse the marchers and divert them from the square.
By day’s end, dozens of demonstrators had been detained while internet videos showed others had been chased and beaten.
One person was shot and killed during the protests, according to Iran’s semiofficial Fars news agency. Several others were injured and listed in serious condition as a result of the shooting, which the Iranian government blamed on “agitators and seditionists.”
Uniformed security forces and pro-government Basij militiamen had earlier advanced on crowds who chanted “Death to the dictator!” during demonstrations in the city’s Imam Hossein Square — the planned starting point of a scheduled rally, a witness said.
“We definitely see them as enemies of the revolution and spies, and we will confront them with force,” said Cmdr. Hossein Hamedani of the Revolutionary Guard, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency.