TEHRAN: Iran's government threatened harsh action Saturday if opposition supporters take to the streets again to demand a new election in open defiance of the country's supreme leader.
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 An Iranian woman holds a poster of the President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad under a painting of the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a rally at the conclusion of the Friday prayers, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, June 19, 2009. [Agencies] |
Websites run by supporters of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi called for street protests at 4 pm (7:30 am EDT, 1130 GMT) but the candidate himself issued no public statement.
The decision to rally or stay off the streets will be crucial for the opposition movement and the unprecented threat it poses to Iran's government. Rallying could spark a bloody crackdown on Mousavi's supporters, or greatly weaken the government by forcing it back away from its threat of violence. If the opposition heeds the official warnings and cancels, it could give the government the opening it needs to suppress its greatest internal challenge since the 1979 Islamic Revoultion.
It was not clear if Mousavi has the power to halt street demonstrations even if he orders his supporters to stay inside. The government appeared to be preparing for a confrontation.
Police and members of the pro-government Basij militia were out in force on the streets on Tehran, particularly in central commercial districts.
Tehran Province Police Chief Ahmad Reza Radan said "police forces will crack down on any gathering or protest rally which are being planned by some people."
English-language state TV said the country's highest national security body had ordered security forces to deal with the situation. It did not elaborate.
The government statements were the most explicit warnings yet of force against protesters who gathered in massive rallies last week to demand the government cancel and rerun elections that ended with a declaration of overwhelming victory for hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei sided firmly with Ahmadinejad Friday, saying the result reflected popular will and ordering opposition leaders to end street protests or be held responsible for any "bloodshed and chaos" to come.
The statement effectively closed the door to Mousavi's demand for a new election, ratcheting up the possibility of a confrontation.
Iran's Interior Ministry raised the possibility of directly punishing the 67-year-old former prime minister, saying he would "be held responsible for the consequences of any illegal gatherings." The ministry accused him of supporting protests that "have led to the disruption of security and public order," State Security Council secretary, Abbas Mohtaj, said in a statement on the ministry's website.
Mousavi and reformist candidate Mahdi Karroubi did not attend a meeting with Iran's Guardian Council on Saturday, state TV said. The council, an unelected body of 12 clerics and Islamic law experts close to Khamenei, investigates voter fraud claims.
A conservative candidate, former Revolutionary Guard commander Mohsen Rezaei, did attend, state TV said.
The state's English-language channel said the Guardian Council had agreed to a recount of 10 percent of the votes, without providing details.
State TV also said the Association of Combatant Clerics, a reformist group linked to former President Mohammad Khatami, a Mousavi ally, had told supporters to stay off the streets. The report could not immediately be confirmed.