Tear gas, water cannons used on Tehran protesters

Tehran: Witnesses say police are using tear and water cannons to disperse thousands of protesters rallying in Iran's capital to demand a new presidential election.

Eyewitnesses contacted by The Associated Press say the protesters gathered in central Tehran in open defiance of the cleric-led government.

The witnesses say some 3,000 protesters chanted "Death to dictatorship!" near Revolution Square. Police confronted them by using tear gas and water cannon.

English-language state TV, meanwhile, is reporting that a blast at the Tehran shrine of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini has wounded two people. The report could not be independently confirmed.

Witnesses say across Tehran, thousands of police and plainclothes militia members are filling the streets to prevent rallies.