What do residents of the Iranian capital think about the wave of uprisings and unrest in the Arab world that have toppled the regimes of Tunisia and Egypt and are continuing to rock countries such as Libya, Bahrain and Yemen?
The Times asked a number of people in the streets of Tehran about their thoughts on what's going on in the Arab world and what they think will be the outcome of the upheavals. The responses yielded an array of reactions and differing opinions.
However, the interviewees were unified when it came to Libya, agreeing that its leader, Moammar Kadafi, must go. Many also expressed concerns about protest-stricken Bahrain -- a neighboring country with a Shiite majority population, some of whom are loyal to Iran, but is ruled by a minority Sunni dynasty -- and said the government is cracking down heavily on the Shiite demonstrators.
Mozhgan Faraji, a 33-year-old Iranian journalist, said she felt that Western countries are paying much greater attention to the war in Libya than to the demonstrations and unrest in Bahrain and Yemen and wondered why that is the case.
"I am baffled," she told the Times. "Why on Earth are the Western powers not interested in the unrest in Yemen and Bahrain? Are human rights in Yemen and Bahrain not as important as in Libya ? Perhaps the Western countries are worried about the emerging revolutionary brand of Shiite in the region. But honestly, I am happy that the crazy leader of Libya... >>>
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