Email from Iran 4

Sunday, June 21st, 2:40 a.m. EST

Dear friends and family,

I would like to thank all of you for your support and concern. … From watching CNN, I see that all over the world rallies and protests are taking place. Things here have become overly complicated and complex. The army has been called in. There are over 2 million troops positioned throughout Tehran, alongside police, Basij (militia) and some unidentified soliders. Many of these soliders do not speak Farsi and have been using brutal force against the citizens and people of Iran. Rumors are they are either Arabs, Hezbollah from Palestine or Russians. Nobody knows, but one thing is for sure; they are not Iranian.

Yesterday over 150 people died in clashes with the police and paramilitary. News reports coming out of Iran are vague at best. The government news agencies are not reporting the actual number of dead and hurt. They are hauling away people like cattle as they are killed or hurt in the street. People do not hear from the people who are hurt…they are simply hauled away to jails.

The paramilitary has moved in armored vehicles, tanks, and are using live rounds. The people took to the streets yesterday despite a warning from the Supreme Leader himself that there would be bloodshed. The paramilitary crushed the people and their demonstrations. There was a special armored vehicle in the downtown area close to our store, which had a hose at the top which sprayed acid liquid on people, burning their faces and bodies. They used batons, guns, and other weapons.

Clashes with riot police and paramilitary forces are being reported throughout the country. The force being used by the government against its own people is indescribable. Nobody knows what’s going on within the government itself. Businesses are closing at 1 pm…some 2 pm….the country is shutting down day by day.

The people are shouting “Allah Akbar” (God is Great) at night, which is an act of defiance against the Supreme Leader. I can hear gunfire at night. People were running for their lives yesterday. My friend said she saw four people slain in the streets as she was driving home from work trying to escape the chaos.

International news media have been barred from reporting from the street and have been on hotel arrest. They can only report one news story a day from their hotel rooms. Calls to the US have been limited and are all controlled. The internet speed here has been reduced significantly to prevent people from uploading their videos and pictures from all the chaos. Most communications have been disrupted and its very hard to get accurate information regarding what’s going on.

However, through people in the streets and various other contacts, I have been able to gather this basic information. God only knows what will happen next……either people will give up and go home or more bloodshed is to come……I am safe……and once again thank you for all your support……Do not give up…Keep writing letters, keep organizing rallies…The international pressure is helping!!!!!!!!!!!!