Saturday, June 13, 2009

Ahmadinejad declares victory, Mousavi decries 'vote rigging'

Ahmadinejad wins Iran presidential election/BBC
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been re-elected as president of Iran in a resounding victory, the interior minister says. He won some 62.6% of the vote in an election marked by a high turnout of 85%, official figures show.

Supporters of pro-reform candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi have cried foul and clashed with riot police in Tehran, while public protests have been banned.

Iran's Supreme Leader congratulated Mr Ahmadinejad on his win, and urged his rivals against "provocations".

In a statement, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei praised the high turnout and described the count as a "real celebration" and called for calm in the aftermath of the result.

"Enemies may want to spoil the sweetness of this event... with some kind of ill-intentioned provocations," the ayatollah said.

Mr Mousavi has also claimed victory, calling the result a "dangerous charade", as his backers vowed to appeal for a re-run.

Read the complete report here ...

Related report:
Iran Election Update: Reformist Candidate’s Headquarters Seized and Locked (International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran; 13 June 2009)

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