Hundreds of demonstrators marched in New York today demanding the release of political prisoners in Iran. The crowd chanted "Freedom Now" and carried banners that read "Stop arrest and torture of Iranians."

The demonstrators made their way to Iran's UN mission where a message from human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi was read:

"If one country wants to support democracy in another country that is under dictatorial rule, the only thing to do is to support the freedom fighters who stand for the democratic institutions of that country. Done this way, the sapling of democracy will bear the flower of freedom."

One of the protesters, Navid Hazeghi, a member of  the "United for Iran" movement described the demostrations as a "grassroot effort that developed on Facebook and brought together 1,000 people in four days."

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The following  video is from this week's hunger strike at the United Nations headquarters: