TEHRAN, July 9: Clashes between Islamic militia and groups of young people defying a ban on rallies erupted in Tehran on Tuesday on the anniversary of July 1999 student unrest, witnesses said.

The violence broke out as security forces in anti-riot gear tried to disperse betweeen 5,000 and 6,000 students and others who gathered at Tehran University campus and in neighbouring streets.

Police and secret service agents as well as the Bassij militia were out in strength to enforce the ban declared on Monday on all commemorations of the 1999 unrest sparked by a police raid on a student dormitory.

Witnesses said several people were beaten by the militia, before the crowds started to disperse.

Tension heightened with the arrival of far-right Hezbollah vigilante groups who positioned themselves in front of the university facing the crowds.

The vigilantes, headed by Hassan Bakhshi, the father of four “martyrs” of the Iran-Iraq war, chanted slogans including: “Death to those who oppose the supreme leader’s authority. Death to America.”

In a sign of “popular support” for the demonstration, entire families, parents and even their children came out of their houses to stand by and watch. However, they did not join the crowds.

Teenagers said they were following calls broadcast on radio by exiled Iranian opposition groups to turn out on the streets and commemorate the student unrest anniversary and express their dissatisfaction.

A woman stood before a group of other women being approached by security forces and shouted: “Political prisoners must be freed!”

No serious incidents or injuries were reported or witnessed.

The 1999 unrest, among the worst troubles in Iran since the 1979 revolution, lasted several days after the police raided the dormitory to break up protests over the closure of a popular pro-reform newspaper.

Official reports said one person was killed in the ensuing disturbances in Tehran and the provinces, while pro-reform newspapers gave higher figures for the week-long violence.

In recent days, numerous student organisations had announced plans to hold nationwide gatherings and rallies to commemorate the police attack.

But the nation’s largest pro-reform student movement, the Office to Consolidate Unity (OCU), said on Sunday it would refrain from holding a “silent rally” Tuesday if it would lead to “social disturbances,” according to the student news agency ISNA.

On Monday, OCU member Hamid Choubineh warned that “extremist groups” were looking to “profit from this anniversary” and said all student rallies had had to be cancelled.

In Ardebil, northwestern Iran, planned speeches by reformist MP Mohsen Armin and liberal Ezatollah Sahabi, who is close to the outlawed Iran Freedom Movement (IFM), were cancelled at the last minute following protests from the authorities.

Numerous other planned speeches by liberals and reformers were also cancelled in response to the ministry ban.

Universally criticized in reformist circles, the ban came as tensions with conservatives were heightened over a court case against secular writer Hashem Aghajari, who is accused of offending religious scholars.—AFP