Hundreds Gather to Protest Outcome of Iranian Election

Hundreds of people marched on the streets of Berkeley Sunday afternoon to protest the outcome of Friday's election in Iran.

Although officials declared incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the winner of the election, opposing candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi said the election was rigged as his supporters clashed with police in Iran, according to the Associated Press.

Local protesters-many of whom hold Iranian citizenship and voted in local polling locations-gathered at 6 p.m. on Bancroft Way and Telegraph Avenue and shouted slogans including "Where is my vote" and "Obama, please support Mousavi" as they marched to Downtown Berkeley.

The protest was one of many being held in California by the International Alliance of Iranian Students against the election results, according to Reza Mohajerinejad, the alliance's founder and president.

"When I think about Iran right now and see the pictures, it kills me, it really kills me," said Mohajerinejad, a Berkeley

resident and San Francisco State University student. "(The protesters in Iran are) on the streets for their rights ... and we have to support them."

The Berkeley rally lasted about two and a half hours as protesters held signs and sang songs including the pre-revolution Iranian National Anthem.

"The election is a fraud," said protester and Berkeley resident Ali Rasara. "I'm here to support my people in Iran."