Funeral of Iran's senior dissident cleric turns into opposition rally

PanARMENIAN.Net - The funeral of Iran's most senior dissident cleric on Monday was turned into an opposition rally in the holy city of Qom, with mourners chanting "death to the dictator", in spite of attempts by the authorities to stop it.



The estimates of people who attended for the funeral of Grand Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri vary from tens to hundreds of thousands. But the boost for the opposition could be shortlived.



There were several reports of clashes between opposition supporters and security forces. Late on Monday night it was reported on a conservative website that some 2,000 hardline Montazeri opponents had attacked the Qom memorial service.



In recent years he has held an unassailable position within the regime that allowed him to criticise its leaders without facing serious punishment. It gave him a free hand to condemn the post-election violence this summer and even take a swipe at the country's supreme leader.



The opposition now has no equivalent figure, leaving its leaders with the challenge of keeping up with their increasingly radical supporters.



"Mr. Montazeri's commitment to freedom and his political courage was unique and his death creates a vacuum which cannot be filled easily," said Abolfazl Moussavian, a reform-minded cleric, The Financial Times reported.