Sam Brownback: “I don't want to overly belabor the point but there is a very important thing happening on the other side of the world…”

“I don't want to overly belabor the point but there is a very important thing happening on the other side of the world, in Iran, at this very time. My office has been receiving, now, numerous reports of a growing protest in Iran taking place right now. This is within the past couple of hours. It is dawn in Tehran, as I speak. It is estimated that this past evening between 5,000 to 8,000 students are joining protests against the Government's crackdown on student democracy dissidents. Recently, five student leaders were arrested in advance of the July 9 anniversary of the original mass student protest in 1999. Even though it is now almost dawn in Tehran, the protest has continued. I understand during the night there was a dissipation of the protest. A number of the student protesters--this was outside Tehran University--who were protesting dissipated. Rather than going back to their dorm rooms, they have gone and dispersed to other places because, after the 1999 protest, a number of the Iranian military guard went to the dormitories and arrested en masse a number of students and they were roundly punished. We have also received reports that Iranian Government forces are beating up on the protesters, firing warning shots at them. I do not have that verified but we have received these reports. I call this to the attention of Members of this body because there has been a lot of discussion going on at the present time of U.S. policy towards Iran.”