Iranians Rally in Show of Defiance     09/18 06:18

   Hundreds of thousands of Iranians rallied Friday in a government-organized 
show of defiance after months of war, pledging their readiness to take up arms 
in the biggest such demonstration since the United States and Israel attacked 
in February.

   CAIRO (AP) -- Hundreds of thousands of Iranians rallied Friday in a 
government-organized show of defiance after months of war, pledging their 
readiness to take up arms in the biggest such demonstration since the United 
States and Israel attacked in February.

   Iran's government has sought to rally the people and stress national unity, 
even as the economy worsens under a U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and 
new U.S. sanctions meant to increase Tehran's economic pain.

   Estimates varied of the number of people volunteering to receive limited 
military training and defend the country in an effort described as "Janfaday-e 
Iran," or the "ones who sacrifice their lives for Iran." They marched through 
downtown Tehran in combat uniform, carrying flags, as onlookers cheered.

   For days, state media have encouraged Iranians to join the campaign, saying 
training with assault rifles would begin soon. The volunteers would be an 
additional layer of security to the powerful Revolutionary Guard paramilitary 
and its all-volunteer arm, the Basij.

   Tehran's Guard chief, Gen. Hassan Hassanzadeh, told the state broadcaster 
that over 600,000 people had registered to participate, with over 1 million 
expected to take part in the training. On Friday morning, the broadcaster 
estimated over 300,000 people were on the streets.

   The new head of the Basij, Hossein Taeb, declared in a speech as the rally 
began that the volunteers will be ready for "full-fledged defense" and similar 
rallies will take place in other cities soon.

   The new trainees will make a "nightmare" for Iran's enemies, Taeb added, as 
President Masoud Pezeshkian, military commanders and other senior officials 
watched the march.

   Some participants trampled flags of the U.S. and Israel. Others chanted 
"Death to America" and "Death to Israel."

   "I am here to tell (U.S. President Donald) Trump that we Iranians have no 
fear about his threats against our homeland," said Marzieh Afaghi, 24, who 
attended the rally with her toddler and husband. "No one in history could 
invade Iran and remain there."

   The rally was also a chance for Iran to show off military hardware. 
Anti-aircraft batteries were on display, while female Guard members in black 
headscarves sat with truck-mounted machine guns.

   The Guard displayed drones that have been widely used against ships in the 
Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has asserted control since the war began, severely 
affecting the Gulf region's shipments of oil and natural gas to the rest of the 
world.

   The volunteers could help suppress future dissent

   Friday's events also suggested that hard-liners like Taeb among Iran's 
leadership will be more prepared to suppress any future demonstration against 
the theocracy.

   In January, shortly before the war, Iran saw some of its largest nationwide 
protests in history, which began over the struggling economy and turned to 
wider grievances. Activists have said a crackdown killed over 7,000 people and 
saw tens of thousands detained.

   In May, government officials said more than 30 million people in Iran -- 
home to a population of some 90 million -- had volunteered via an online form 
or at public gatherings to lay down their lives for the theocracy. The 
Associated Press could not independently confirm that.