Iran reform leader Mousavi: 'It's not yet too late'

Ahmadinejad supporters demonstrated in Tehran along with Mousavi supporters. (Newsha Tavakolian/Polaris, for The New York Times)

Iran's embattled opposition leader urged his supporters Wednesday to keep working for "the rights of the people" in his first rally since the regime earlier this week validated the results of the country's disputed presidential election, AP reported.

In a fresh show of defiance, Mir Hossein Mousavi reasserted his claim that the June 12 election was illegitimate, and he demanded that Iran's cleric-led government release all political prisoners and institute electoral reforms and press freedoms, according to the report.

"It's not yet too late," Mousavi, who has slipped from public view in recent days, said in a lengthy statement posted on his website. "It's our historic responsibility to continue our complaint and make efforts not to give up the rights of the people."

Mousavi better watch his back. I wouldn't be surprised if he suddenly went missing...

Mousavi also called for a return to a more "honest" political environment in the Islamic Republic. Return?

His latest challenge came as Iran's Basij militia asked the chief prosecutor to investigate Mousavi for his role in violent protests that it said undermined national security.

I'm telling you--if this continues they're going to lock him up, and when they do, the shit is going to hit the fan yet again. A call for reform is understandable, but it came on the heels and partly as a result of the June 12 elections. What if indeed Ahmadinejad is the legitimate winner? That would mean that the majority chose him, and in a democracy the majority rules--right?

The semiofficial Fars news agency said the militia—known as supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's street enforcers—sent the prosecutor a letter accusing Mousavi of taking part in nine offenses against the state, including "disturbing the nation's security," which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment, AP reported.

Mousavi insists the vote was tainted by massive fraud and that he--not incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad--is the rightful winner.

Will we ever know for sure? With the Guardian Council, Iran's top electoral oversight body, confirming Ahmadinejad won after recounting only 10% of the votes earlier this week, I doubt it.

Iran's regime says 17 protesters and eight Basiji were killed in two weeks of unrest that followed the election.

Hmm...that figure is something else we'll never know for sure.

"Whether he wanted to or not, Mr. Mousavi in many areas supervised or assisted in punishable acts," said the Basij letter, which also accused Mousavi of bringing "pessimism" into the public sphere.

Meanwhile, Ahmadinejad canceled plans to travel to Libya as an observer at an African Union summit, Libyan officials said. It would have been Ahmadinejad's second trip outside Iran since the election.

Iran's Foreign Ministry said unspecified "preoccupations" (such as being shot) kept the president at home. Some African officials had complained that Ahmadinejad's presence at the three-day gathering could divert attention from Africa's problems.

Ahmadinejad on Tuesday repeated the claims that post-election street riots were linked to a "soft revolution" aided by foreign powers.

If that's what a soft revolution looks like, I'd hate to see what a regular revolution would look like in Iran. It's not like the general public has weapons at its disposal...

"Enemies, despite overt and covert conspiracies to topple (the ruling system) through a soft overthrow, failed to reach their goals," state television quoted Ahmadinejad as telling Intelligence Ministry officials, AP reported.

It's unclear how many people have been detained during the post-election riots and protests, but at least one group, the Paris-based International Federation of Human Rights, claimed at least 2,000 arrests have been made. The figures could not be independently verified because of tight media restrictions, AP said.

Ahmadinejad is scheduled to be sworn in as early as July 26.

They better do that ceremony indoors.

Sources: AP, Reuters
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