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WESTWOOD -- Local Iranians and their supporters gathered in Westwood Sunday for a candlelight vigil to show solidarity with protesters in Iran whose challenges to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent reelection have been met with violence.
The rally may have been the largest yet at the Westwood Federal building, located at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Veterans Avenue.
Another rally was held earlier in the day Sunday, and two held on Saturday in the same location attracted hundreds of people.
Other protests and rallies were also held around the Southland, the nation and the world.
The demonstrators in Westwood said they will continue to rally as long as the protests continue in Iran. They lit candles to remember the 17 protesters who have reportedly died in street demonstrations in Tehran, one of them believed to be a 16-year-old girl.
Protesters held signs that read "Stop the killing" and "Where is my vote?". Many wore green armbands, headbands, and t-shirts, in support of the Green Wave Movement, lead by Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi. Mousavi has called for a recount in Iran's June 12 election.
The Westwood protests are the latest in a string of similar protests alleging voter Iranian presidential election. Opponents of Ahmadinejad locally and in Iran have angrily accused the hard-line president of using fraud to steal away any chance of a fair election.
The protesters have called on President Barack Obama to take a harder stance on Iran.
The president released a statement Saturday saying: "The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching. We mourn each and every innocent life that is lost. We call on the Iranian government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people. The universal rights to assembly and free speech must be respected, and the United States stands with all who seek to exercise those rights."
Protests have taken place on an almost daily basis across the United States and the world, as well as Iran.
Defying Ahmadinejad's order to stop protesting, thousands of Iranians have taken to the streets of Tehran in escalating demonstrations that are being met by escalating efforts to put them down.
The unrest is being called the largest since the Iranian revolution of 1979, and is potentially a threat the stability of the Islamic state.
The initial street actions began in Iran last Saturday as a protest against what many believe was a rigged election with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reelected. But protesters' demands have subce grown to calls for more democracy, civil rights for women and an end to repression.
Authorities in Iran have tried to block out all opposition information, jamming satellite TV channels, banning foreign journalists and blocking cell phones and Internet access. Iranians have turned to YouTube for foreign news coverage.
Los Angeles' Iranian community in believed to be one of the largest in the United States.
The rally may have been the largest yet at the Westwood Federal building, located at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Veterans Avenue.
Another rally was held earlier in the day Sunday, and two held on Saturday in the same location attracted hundreds of people.
Other protests and rallies were also held around the Southland, the nation and the world.
The demonstrators in Westwood said they will continue to rally as long as the protests continue in Iran. They lit candles to remember the 17 protesters who have reportedly died in street demonstrations in Tehran, one of them believed to be a 16-year-old girl.
Protesters held signs that read "Stop the killing" and "Where is my vote?". Many wore green armbands, headbands, and t-shirts, in support of the Green Wave Movement, lead by Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi. Mousavi has called for a recount in Iran's June 12 election.
The Westwood protests are the latest in a string of similar protests alleging voter Iranian presidential election. Opponents of Ahmadinejad locally and in Iran have angrily accused the hard-line president of using fraud to steal away any chance of a fair election.
The protesters have called on President Barack Obama to take a harder stance on Iran.
The president released a statement Saturday saying: "The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching. We mourn each and every innocent life that is lost. We call on the Iranian government to stop all violent and unjust actions against its own people. The universal rights to assembly and free speech must be respected, and the United States stands with all who seek to exercise those rights."
Protests have taken place on an almost daily basis across the United States and the world, as well as Iran.
Defying Ahmadinejad's order to stop protesting, thousands of Iranians have taken to the streets of Tehran in escalating demonstrations that are being met by escalating efforts to put them down.
The unrest is being called the largest since the Iranian revolution of 1979, and is potentially a threat the stability of the Islamic state.
The initial street actions began in Iran last Saturday as a protest against what many believe was a rigged election with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reelected. But protesters' demands have subce grown to calls for more democracy, civil rights for women and an end to repression.
Authorities in Iran have tried to block out all opposition information, jamming satellite TV channels, banning foreign journalists and blocking cell phones and Internet access. Iranians have turned to YouTube for foreign news coverage.
Los Angeles' Iranian community in believed to be one of the largest in the United States.
