Dozens march in San Francisco to celebrate Reza Pahlavi, protest Iran war

The U.S. military says it destroyed a sailing vessel affiliated with Iran after allegedly conducting surveillance on Navy ships in the Gulf of Oman. The operation took place on Friday. U.S. Central Command says the ship's civilian crew had ignored repeated warnings and attempted to violate the naval blockade against Iran multiple times. Crew members were safely removed from prior to the destruction of the vessel and the people aboard were transported to their home countries. The operation comes as dozens of people marched in San Francisco today in solidarity with the people of Iran in their struggle for freedom and human rights. As KTVU's Tom Vacar reports, the event also honored one of the key leaders in the opposition These are about 50 Bay Area Iranian Americans and their supporters who want to rid Iran of its ultra-conservative and vindictive Islamic State. A huge task. It is very hard, but we are doing it and we will not stop until Iran is free. Free Iran is a free world. They marched in San Francisco from Pier 39 to Embarcadero Plaza. It was in celebration of a major international award presented to the Iranian people through the leader of the opposition, Prince Reza Pahlavi, son of the Shah of Iran who was overthrown in 1979 by a popular uprising led by Shia cleric Ayatollah Khomeini. For 47 years, Iranians have been fighting against Islamic Republic And the diaspora is upon us to educate those who don't know. The Nauman Foundation is a non-profit German foundation that's dedicated to promoting liberal principles, individual freedoms, democracy, and the rule of law. The award honors the Iranian people for their courage and their ongoing struggle for freedom, democracy, and human rights. Here, the crown prince is shown on the Associated Press APT YouTube channel accepting the award for the Iranian people. Standing alongside the Iranian people in their fight to overthrow the Islamic Republic is no longer a remote act of charity or a distant human rights stance. But an absolute security necessity for the defense and preservation of the free world. President Trump! Tuesday's election has substantially increased the difficulty of prolonging the Iranian war. It's not a war. It can't be a war where for five months nobody is hurt, killed, or anything else. It's not a war. It has to do with the fact that we won't let Iran have a nuclear weapon. So it's a fair question to ask. Will the new Congress support either the firepower or the Trump administration's unsuccessful record of peace negotiations? Tom Bakar, KTVU, Fox 2 News.