-
People run past a burning bus on a street in Tehran as clashes kill at least 10 Iranians - Source: Reuters -
Related
Iranian authorities blamed "terrorists" and rioters for clashes
in which at least 10 people were killed and state media suggested
only the West stood to gain from a week of unrest sparked by a
disputed election.
Iran state television said 10 people were killed and more than 100
others injured in protests held in Tehran in defiance of a stern
warning by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. A separate report
put the number of deaths at 13.
State television said the violence included the torching of a
mosque, which it blamed on "rioters".
"In the unrest leading to clashes 10 people were killed and more
than 100 wounded," it said.
"The presence of terrorists ... in yesterday's event in Enghelab
and Azadi avenues was tangible."
The disputed June 12 election handed an overwhelming victory to
hard-line anti-Western President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sparking the
biggest protests and most violent unrest since the 1979 Islamic
Revolution which ousted the US-backed shah.
Opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi, who came second to
Ahmadinejad in the poll and whose followers have spearheaded
protests, says the election was fraudulent and must be
annulled.
There were no immediate reports of street protests on Sunday.
Government restrictions prevent correspondents working for
foreign media from attending demonstrations to report.
State TV earlier announced the arrests of members of the Mujahideen
Khalq Organisation (MKO), an exiled opposition group which it
accused of terrorist activities including setting buses on fire and
destroying public property.
Criticism of West
Iran's foreign minister sharply criticised Britain and other
Western countries for their statements on the election.
In an address to foreign diplomats in Tehran, Manouchehr Mottaki
denounced what he described as interfering remarks by British
officials regarding the vote.
He said Britain for a long time had targeted elections in Iran and
suggested that people linked to British intelligence had travelled
to the country prior to this month's election.
On Saturday, state television aired interviews with critics of the
protests, urging Iranians to unite behind the government and
suggesting only the West gained from Iran's troubles.
Helicopters criss-crossed Tehran on Saturday and ambulance sirens
wailed into the night after streets emptied of protesters who had
defied Khamenei's warning against further demonstrations.
Riot police were deployed in force, firing teargas and using batons
and water cannon to disperse groups of several hundred Iranians who
had gathered across the city.
Mousavi on Saturday said the Islamic Republic must be purged of
"lies and deviations" and told supporters he was "ready for
martyrdom", according to an ally.
But he said he did not seek confrontation with the
authorities.
"We are not against the Islamic system and its laws but against
lies and deviations and just want to reform it," he said in a
statement on his website.
He said if authorities refused to allow peaceful protests they
would face the "consequences" - an apparent rejoinder to Khamenei's
warning that opposition leaders would be held responsible for any
bloodshed resulting from protests.
"The people expect from their officials honesty and decency as many
of our problems are because of lies ... The Islamic revolution
should be the way it was and the way it should be," Mousavi
said.
Police warning
Iran's police chief Ismail Ahmadi Moghaddam has issued a warning to
Mousavi's supporters that his men will "decisively confront" any
further unrest.
US President Barack Obama, in the forefront of diplomatic efforts
to halt an Iranian nuclear programme the West fears could yield
atomic weapons, urged Tehran to "stop all violent and unjust
actions against its own people".
"The Iranian government must understand that the world is watching.
We mourn each and every innocent life that is lost," Obama said in
a statement.
The authorities reject charges of election fraud.
But the highest legislative body said it was ready to recount a
random 10 percent of the votes cast in the election to meet the
complaints of Mousavi and two other candidates.
EDITORS' NOTE: REUTERS AND OTHER FOREIGN MEDIA ARE SUBJECT TO IRANIAN RESTRICTIONS ON THEIR ABILITY TO REPORT, FILM OR TAKE PICTURES IN TEHRAN
World News Video
-
Dangerous rush to Everest summit (1:59)
-
Dozens killed in Syrian massacre (2:09)
-
'King of Romance' competes in Eurovision (1:46)
