Death toll climbs to over 150 in Iran fallout

According to media and eye witness reports from Tehran, more than 150 people have been killed so far, 19 today, in the aftermath of last week's presidential elections in Iran, with hundreds more injured.

In addition to city-wide chaos, reports of the Basij militia raiding homes and stores and showing up without uniform at hospitals to obtain the names of protesters are spreading via Twitter and YouTube, which has videos of these and other events unfolding in Iran as we speak. Basij militia reportedly is blocking access to embassy to which many are flocking seeking aid.

In unrest unseen since the Islamic revolution swept the country 30 years ago, supporters of defeated candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi, who campaigned on promises of change for Iran, took to the streets after the elections last weekend to protest what they claim was a fraudulent vote count to declare President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the winner.

On Friday, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei insisted the vote count was legit, gave Ahmadinejad his blessing, and ordered the demonstrations to end.

Below are highlights from his speech:

"The result of the election comes out of the ballot box, not from the street."

"The legal structure of the election does not allow any vote rigging. Everyone who was in charge of the elections process confirms this fact — and to do so with a difference of 11 million votes...Sometimes there is 100,000 votes here, 200,000 votes there, or 1 million maximum, then one can question whether there has been some rigging or manipulation or irregularities. But there is a difference of 11 million votes. How could this be rigged?"

"I am urging them to end street protests, otherwise they will be responsible for its consequences, and consequences of any chaos.

"If there is any bloodshed, leaders of the protests will be held directly responsible."

More to come...

Sources: CNN, AP, Twitter