It looks like to me that these crackdowns on these protests are getting harsher and harsher. I don't believe the Iranian government for a second when they say they are not beating people and are just retaliating to being hit by the protesters. That's ridiculous when a lot of people on Twitter are telling otherwise.

I hope these protests keep going and they can get up enough of a movement to really change things in Iran.

Cindy...Ga.

Anderson, I hope someone will do a story on the injustice that is taking place with the Bahai's in Iran. These people are being accusted of crimes they did not committ. These people are being persecuted for thier beliefs. When will somebody do a story and confront the goverment of Iran and expose the corruption?

No country, whether it be Iran, Iraq, etc., will ever have freedom of democracy as long as religion is at the center of their governing process. There is no room for freedom if governed by a subjective philosophy.

The more the Ayatollah's suspect the U.S. is encouraging or supporting the demonstrations, the harsher the crack down on the people will be!

The Ayatollah's are suspicious. This is quite different than the U.S. dealing with the Soviet's during the Cold War.

@ Mike....... Isn't the corruption obvious? The fact that millions voted, by paper ballots and in a matter of hours they announced the results? No one with an ounce of common sense would believe the elections were fair and just.

The U.S. has to be cautious, because if the Ayatollah's suspect that our government is meddling we can be sure, more people will be rounded up and killed.

What gives me hope is that Gandhi's revolution in India, was just like this one in Iran. No shots were fired, just people constantly out in the streets protesting.

God bless all the folks in Iran standing up for Freedom & Justice.

Of course they're getting harsher, how else would they suppress the people without fear? It is really awful the way the people of Iran are treated by their government. It is not just the Baha'is either, as mentioned above- it's anyone who so much as whispers any opposition to the current societal (political, religious etc) state in Iran. Journalists, Christians, gays, photographers, musicians, students; where ever there may be a visible spark among the dullness of oppression it must be immediately put out.

Of course these protests began peacefully, as they should, but as the government sends out their big bouncers to massacre those who want to give a voice to freedom, shouldn't violence be met with violence? There's no way the minds of these power hungry government officials can be changed- many actually believe they're doing right in the name of Allah- so to make any change, it must be done with force. If peace it as at all possible, it won't truly be in place until the dust settles and the people emerge.

The death count amazes me considering I can count 17 people just from the pictures that I have seen. I believe that the number of people that have died from this incident is in the hundreds. I am just truly grateful that we are getting this news here and that CNN continues to cover it while the Iranian govt tries to make this go away. I am ridden with disbelief and horror at the things that the government has done to its own people and the fact that the government (including the ambassadors) are trying so hard to cover it up. I don't think that this is going away anytime soon.
The Bahais have been prosecuted since the 79 revolution and so many of them served under the shah. After the revolution, the killed many of them and some were lucky enough to flee the country. Most of the Bahais that I know live in the states so it really surprises me that there are any remaining in Iran.

the brave men and women in my country have had enough with a regime based on lies, killing and manipulation. I want to thank cnn for covering this story so closely. it is very important for all the protesters in iran that the rest of the world sees what type of animals are running this country. They have no respect to life and humanity. It is our duty to not let this momentum go! We need to STAND UNITED! Please check the protest schedule in your city of residence. Write to the white house and UN. This is the only way we can get this regime out of there once and for all. It is heart breaking to see how many people have to die just to get the simple things that we have in the States. I ask all my fellow americans to stand united with the Iranians fighting for freedom and Liberty!

I´ve been following what is happening, and are very happy with the possition President Obama have take on this...it is appeling to ask form USA to intervine when we see injustices like this, and then criticize when we dont agree on when or how it is intervaining....the best international policy I still think is no-intervention and let every country solve their own problems or do any intervention through the ONU...even if it means sometimes having to see so harsh injustice go on...

It seems like president Obama loves to be friends with these terrorist government. The reason the he took the 4th of July invitation was that the Iranian embassy did not RSVP on time. We need tougher action. He will not be elected second term. At least no votes from Iranian American. We are very sure of that.

Mina, you should know that the Baha'i Faith, which numbers a bit over 6 million across the world, has a considerable presence in Iran. Baha'is still find ways to exist and function, however, with great respect to the laws of the country and are ever mindful not to get involved in politics. This is not to say that they are not constantly being sieged, harrassed and or imprisoned for their beliefs, but by their own laws they must obey whichever government in whatever country that they reside in, so Iran is no exception to that rule, even though it is an unjust government as now all people can see.

I would also add that such political systems (Iran's in particular), including that of the United States, often polarizes its citizens as suppose to uniting them and Baha'is are firm in their belief of unification of the entire humankind irrespective of origin, color, creed, and or religious background.

I hope that when anyone speaks of the Baha'is they take into account that this Faith, has no political ties, has no political interest and solely desires, as mentioned, the unifcation of mankind.

All of this is just so hard to watch. I feel so sorry about the injustice done to an entire society of people and entire country. They must find the proof of the discrepancies. Concentrate hard on finding all the proof they can. They have to have an equal number of good guys and cannot stop. Did the Ayatollah not say he would oust Amadinajahd(sp?) if they could prove that he cheated the election? Then again the Ayahtollah has moved to fast towards pushing forward without any afterthought of any discrepancies...How can he(the Ayahtollah) even be trusted with actions like this? Their government is obviously completely broken and they need help. They only thing good about all of this is the people of Iran fighting for their rights. The hope for them to stay strong and stand up for themselves will be with them.

Good afternoon Anderson.

Wars are happening at every moments in people lives and so violatingly unseen or seeningly with too strong warly behaviors. People sometimes are not thinking so honestly, so it is feeling so sad and so much unfairly hurting. The bad things are always so hurt and getting too much illegally strongly in bad actions. I am so looking down at warly violation people who are so bad people.

An.

Where is the UN???

Iran wants to annihilate Israel and Obama is concerned about the civil rights of the Iranians. Obama says “ The world is watching”.. I’ll say that that if you/he/she/they are pathologically predisposed to Abortion indifference, then that as a Litmus Test ought not to allow anyone of them to be able to vote, much less hold political positions in the government that might influence the livelihood of millions. “Next Step for Iran” you ask..? Evil people do evil things such as kill themselves. People ought to fear God.. That’s what ought to be next. Not an Obama concerned about how the Iranian women dress, or if they are happy with their abortion policies and other civil rights as the such. Thank you and good day.

Such brave people ...

I hope they have the strength to hold on to fight for a better future.

According to WSJ (Jun 26 ME News) some Shiite religious leaders are openly questioning the doctrine of "Supreme Leadership" (Velayat-e Faqih), including in Lebanon. This is a hot and timely subject for CNN to investigate and cover.