Some 10,000 protesters in Berlin demand freedom in Iran

Some 10,000 people gathered in central Berlin on Saturday to call for democracy in Iran and show solidarity with protesters there, according to a police count.

The rally, held under the banner “Freedom for Iran,” was organized by the Exiled Iranian Society in Berlin and other groups, with some 340 international organizations and political figures supporting the protest.

Call-outs for the demo were shared on social media, through flyers, and several newspapers ran large advertisements.

The police reported that the demonstration was peaceful and said some 380 officers were policing the event.

There were many relatives of people who were killed or arrested during the recent protests in Iran at the rally, organizers said.

Many participants waved Iranian flags. Some held photos of Maryam Rajavi, president of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NWRI), which is banned in Iran. Some people wore yellow vests saying “Free Iran.”

Rajavi addressed the Berlin demonstrators in person.

Former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo was due to appear live by video. Other speakers included former head of the federal chancellery Peter Altmaier and former justice minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger.

The latest protests roiling Iran were initially triggered by a currency crisis in late December. The rallies then grew into political protests against political system. The authorities responded with a violent crackdown. Iranian human rights groups say more than 3,400 people have died, though exact figures are difficult to verify amid the information blackout.