Is the political situation boiling over in Tehran, Iran?”
THOUSANDS of people began massing in the streets of Tehran yesterday to protest against Iran’s disputed presidential election, increasing tensions a day after clashes left at least seven people dead. It was the largest anti-government demonstration since the Iranian revolution that overthrew the shah. But in answer to the supreme leader’s U-turn call for an examination of opposition charges of vote-rigging, the country’s powerful Guardian Council said yesterday that it was prepared to order only a partial recount, and it ruled out an annulment of the vote. The concession was rejected by the main opposition candidate, Mir Hussein Moussavi, and other opponents of the declared winner, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The opposition is demanding a new election. As the political tumult grew, the Iranian government cancelled all foreign press credentials and told Iranian journalists that they could report only from their offices — but news continued to flow out of Tehran. Ahmadinejad appeared
THOUSANDS of people began massing in the streets of Tehran yesterday to protest against Iran’s disputed presidential election, increasing tensions a day after clashes left at least seven people dead. It was the largest anti-government demonstration since the Iranian revolution that overthrew the shah. But in answer to the supreme leader’s U-turn call for an examination of opposition charges of vote-rigging, the country’s powerful Guardian Council said yesterday that it was prepared to order only a partial recount, and it ruled out an annulment of the vote. The concession was rejected by the main opposition candidate, Mir Hussein Moussavi, and other opponents of the declared winner, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The opposition is demanding a new election. As the political tumult grew, the Iranian government cancelled all foreign press credentials and told Iranian journalists that they could report only from their offices — but news continued to flow out of Tehran. Ahmadinejad appeared
