Montazeri: Basij on the "path of Satan"

Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri published another one of his increasingly blunt letters today on Mowjcamp (فارسی), a reformist Web site.

This week he denounces the Basij, the Iranian militiamen who led the crackdown on pro-democracy protesters after the stolen election in June. Montazeri faults them for acting against religion, and argues that they should pay blood money to the families of those killed or injured.

"Why do you beat people? Because they don't accept what you say? The Basij was mobilized to act in the way of God, not Satan. Isn't it unfortunate to go to hell for the benefits of others?"

The next day of pro-democracy protests, by the way, will be Dec. 7 -- Iran's Student Day, the anniversary of the 1953 murder of three University of Tehran students by the Shah's security forces.