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June 15, 2009

Iran Supreme Leader Calls for Probe into Disputed Election
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ordered an
investigation into allegations of election fraud in Friday’s
presidential vote. Khamenei made the announcement following three days
of street protests by supporters of opposition leader Mir Hossein
Mousavi, who has accused President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of stealing the
election. Khamenei’s decision to call for a probe has shocked many in
Iran. On Saturday, Khamenei had urged the nation to unite behind
Ahmadinejad and called the result a “divine assessment.” According to
the official election results, Ahmadinejad was re-elected with 62
percent of the vote, but Mousavi claims the vote was rigged. Mousavi was
planning to hold a major rally in Tehran today, but Iranian officials
ordered a ban on protests. Opposition websites report that over a
hundred prominent opposition members were detained and then released
over the weekend. At a rally on Sunday, Ahmadinejad spoke before tens of
thousands of his supporters.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: “In our beloved Iran, democracy is a
fundamental principle. First of all, it’s the nation which determines
everything. It’s the people who decide. It’s the nation’s will that
governs. It’s the nation which selects the rulers in every
decision-making level of the political system”