Iran's opposition planning protests

A Facebook page promoting the February 14 protests reads, 'Iran's freedom valentine - don't forget our date'

Amid reports of a low turnout for the annual march commemorating the anniversary of Iran's Islamic revolution on Friday, there are calls among opposition leaders for nationwide marches against the government on Monday.
Protesters, including university students, truck drivers and gold merchants are said to be organising marches across the country under the umbrella of the country's Green Movement, apparently inspired by recents demonstrations in Egypt and Tunisia.
The movement, also known as the Green Wave, made international headlines after the disputed 2009 presidential elections which saw Mahmoud Ahmadinejad win a second term in office.
Monday's protests have been called at the behest of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, which the movement backed as opposition presidential candidates in the election two years ago.
The governments of both Tunisia and Egypt were successfully toppled via massive and prolonged protests and rallies.
Permission to hold rallies in Egypt was sought prior to the demonstrators' actions but no such permit has not been granted in Iran, and the country's Revolutionary Guard has already promised to forcefully confront any protesters.
Some of the posters advertising Monday's rally on Facebook refer to February 14 day as a "valentine to Iran's freedom". The main Facebook page calling for demonstrations has over 43,000 followers.
While the government says that 50 million people turned up for the 32nd anniversary of the revolution, which, on the Iranian calender, takes place on the 22nd day of the month of Bahman, those numbers are disputed by some independent media.
On the back of the toppling of Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, on Friday, some Iranian officials have suggested parallels between the February 11, 1979 departure of Iran's shah and Mubarak's ousting.
Crackdowns
While it remains to be seen if Monday's protests materialise, there are reports that at least 14 activists have been arrested in recent days and that Karroubi has been placed under house arrest.
Among those reportedly arrested are some of Mousavi's inner circle.
Kaleme.com has named them as Mohammad Hossein Sharifzadegan, who is Mousavi's brother in law and a former welfare minister, as well as Saleh Noghrehkar, who heads Mousavi's legal team.
According to Irangreenvoice.com, they also include Mostafa Mir-Ahamadizadeh, a law professor at Qom University, adviser to Karroubi and an ally of Mohammad Khatami, Iran's former president and a noted reformist.

Irangreenvoice.com says that Mir-Ahamadizadeh has been taken to "a prison run by the Intelligence Bureau of Qom".
The state has also engaged in jamming satellite signals and has blocked the word "Bahman" from search engines.
'Arab envy'
Kelly Niknejad, founder and editor in chief of news site Tehranbureau.com, told Al Jazeera that it is hard to tell what, if anything, may unfold on Iran's streets on Monday.
"The Iranian government did a very effective job of keeping the protest down," said Niknejad, referring to the absence of protests in Iran since 2009.
"They've made it such a high-stakes game to go out and protest."
As a result, Niknejad says she is surprised that Karroubi and Mousavi have called for the protests.
"Perhaps they know Iranians in away that those of us who live on the sidelines don't ... perhaps they know something that we don't," she said.
Niknejad, who has been in touch with people in Iran, said that while some have said they will go out and protest, many are "are scared to death".
She also says there may be a case of "Arab envy" among some anti-government Iranians.
With events in Egypt and Tunisia in mind, it seems that there has been a renewed interest in the opposition movement in Iran - at least in the expatriate community - but while interest outside the country might be a reflection of the mood within Iran's borders, it will not necessarily translate to action there.
"It's easy to raise your fist from behind the veil of the laptop," said Niknejad.
Vested interests
While deposed leaders such as Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the Tunisian president who fled to Saudi Arabia on January 14, have often fled abroad, Niknejad says she cannot see the same happening to Iran's leadership should any uprising be successful.
"I can't imagine Mr Khamenei (Iran's supreme leader) going to a Swiss cottage to live out the rest of his days," she said.
Niknejad said the establishment in Iran will "fight tooth and nail" to remain in power and that it seems unlikely that they would have safe havens outside the country.
The powerful Revolutionary Guard in Iran has a major financial stake in Iran, one far greater than even the Egyptian military.
It is heavily invested in Iran's economy, including petroleum development, construction, weapons manufacturing, communication system, and as a result it has been specifically targeted by international sanctions on Iran.
Niknejad also points out that compared to Iranian security forces, who "beat Iranians to a pulp" in the 2009 protests, the military in Egypt - where journalists were still able to enter and talk to people at the height of the unrest - was relatively benign.
"Egypt on a bad day is better than Iran is on a good day," she said.
D Parvaz @'Al Jazeera'