EDITORIAL
Protesters in Iran cannot be abandoned

Just as they did during the 1979 revolution, youthful Iranian reformists are protesting in the streets. Only this time around, young Iranians are calling for an end to the mullah-led theocracy that their predecessors ushered in two decades ago.

In turn, hardline clerics blame the United States for provoking and emboldening progressives by accusing Iran of harboring terrorists and surreptitiously building a nuclear weapons program.

Clearly, these freedom seekers are enraged — with or without U.S. encouragement — and we sympathize with their frustration with the slow pace of change. President Mohammad Khatami has not brought about the reforms he promised when he ran on a platform of freedom and democracy.

Nor has the Bush administration helped by including Iran in its "axis of evil" and cutting off diplomatic ties with Tehran.

These protests suggest the stirrings of reform that the United States wants for Iran. It is no time to isolate or marginalize Iran to the point where the reformists are left alone to their battle.

Sophisticated constructive engagement is the best way to protect the protesters from retaliation and nudge Iran along on the path toward democracy.