TEHRAN, Iran — Hundreds of thousands of protesters wearing black and carrying candles filled the streets of Tehran again Thursday, joining opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi to mourn demonstrators killed in clashes over Iran’s disputed election.
The massive protest openly defied Iran’s supreme leader, despite a government attempt to placate Mousavi and his supporters by inviting the reformist and two other candidates who ran against hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to a meeting with the country’s main electoral authority. Mousavi and his followers allege Ahmadinejad stole the election.
Many in the huge crowd carried black candles and lit them as night fell. Others wore green wristbands and carried flowers in mourning as they filed into Imam Khomeini Square, a large plaza in the heart of the capital named for the founder of the Islamic Revolution, witnesses said.
Press TV, an English-language version of Iranian state television designed for foreigners, estimated the crowd at hundreds of thousands and said the people listened to a brief address from Mousavi, who called for calm and self-restraint.
A Mousavi Web site said that the crowd exceeded 1 million.
Independent witnesses said that, based on previous demonstrations at the site, the size of the crowd appeared to be in the hundreds of thousands. Foreign news organizations are barred from reporting on Tehran’s streets.
The demonstrators had marched silently until they arrived at the square, where some chanted “Death to the dictator!” one witness said. Press TV showed them making V-for-victory gestures and holding pictures of Mousavi and signs that say “Where’s our Vote?”
A participant told The Associated Press by telephone that the rally stretched for more than three miles through downtown Tehran from the square.
Photos posted online showed Mousavi talking through a portable loudspeaker, dressed in a black suit and dark blue shirt as he raised a hand to address the crowd. The participant confirmed the authenticity of the images.
He described watching “a sea of people” march across a bridge in a constant stream for three hours.
“I remember one old man talking about how the will of the people has started and no one can stop it,” he added.
The participant and the witnesses spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of government retaliation.
On their way home, some demonstrators held a candlelit gathering in front of Tehran University, where Mousavi supporters have accused pro-government militia of attacking students in dormitories.
On Monday, hundreds of thousands turned out in a huge procession that recalled the scale of protests during the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Seven demonstrators were shot and killed that day by pro-regime militia in the first confirmed deaths during the unrest.
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