"How many kids need to die to get the world's attention?": Thousands rally in Times Square to shine spotlight on unrest in Iran
NEW YORK -- Times Square was the starting point for a rally and march Saturday by thousands who demand a regime change in Iran.
As CBS2's Dave Carlin reports, demonstrators say they must win freedom for Iranians being brutally detained and killed.
The crowd is determined to keep a blazing spotlight on young Iranians, an estimated 16,000 of them, arrested by the country's regime during months of protest.
In Times Square, names and faces on posters were lifted high for a march crosstown to the United Nations.
"How many lives, how many kids need to die to get the world's attention?" demonstrator Tala Amir Hajebi said.
Unrest was triggered by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September. She was allegedly beaten while in custody by members of the so-called morality police after she was accused of wearing her head scarf improperly.
READ MORE: "She was tortured": Mahsa Amini's family speaks out amid Iran protests
"It was really heartbreaking, and people said enough is enough, this is enough. It's not first and it's not gonna be last unless we get rid of this government," artist and activist Parastoo Ahovan said.
"Thanks to the brave women of Iran standing on the front lines of this and the noble men who back them," said Huntington resident Andy Alem said.
Alem helped organize Saturday's demonstration.
"My entire life is a crime in the eyes of this regime," he said. "The very least I can do is utilize all the creative spirit that brought me where I am today, thanks to the life I have here, to echo their voices."
The U.N. Human Rights Council will hold a special session in Geneva on Thursday to address what members call the deteriorating human rights situation in Iran.
Hundreds of people have died in what are described as the largest anti-government demonstrations the current regime has seen since it came into power in 1979.