Sep2009 zamaneh
Ayatollah Hoseinali Montazeri’s three grandsons were arrested Monday night, a day after the prominent reformist cleric rallied all Shiite clerics to speak out against the many government offenses in the post-election events in Iran.
Ahmad Montazeri confirmed on Parleman News website that his three sons, 22, 20 and 18 were arrested at his home yesterday. He added that the officials searched and confiscated documents related to his sons.
Ayatollah Montazeri’s son claimed his three sons were arrested in connection with a peaceful gathering on the Muslim holy night of Qadre, in front of Ayatollah Yousef Sanei’s home.
Ayatollah Sanei is another senior reformist cleric who has been critical of the government’s severe reaction to recent protesters. Recently he has been threatened with a lawsuit by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for making “offensive remarks” about the president.
Mr. Montazeri also reported the arrest of the sons of two other Qom clerics in connection with the same gathering. He added that he does not think the arrest of his sons is connected with their grandfather’s letter to Shiite clerics.
Al-Arabieh television network also reported the son of Ayatollah Mousavi Tabrizi, head of Qom seminary was also arrested.
Iran’s presidential election in June has thrown the county into its most serious crisis since the 1979 revolution. Claims of vote-rigging sparked nationwide mass protests and divided the establishment into conservative pro-Ahmadinejad camp and the reformist disputers of the election who are demanding a review of the vote.
This division is also evident in the lines of the Shiite clerics, who urged by longtime government critics like Grand Ayatollah Montazeri, are progressively joining the people’s protests and lending their support to the opposition.
