Iran presidential poll was real and true, says Ahmadinejad

Tehran: Iranian police again clashed on Sunday with demonstrators protesting in Tehran against the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Watch video of protest in Dubai

Ahmadinejad said the Iranian presidential election on June 12, in which he won a second four-year term, was "real" and "true".

Ahmadinejad commented at a news conference in Tehran on Sunday, as opponents alleged electoral fraud in the vote.

Police on motorcycles drove through the crowd to disperse the protesters. At least one person, a woman, was injured. Police briefly detained journalists filming the violence.

The unrest that has rocked Tehran and several other cities since official results were declared on Saturday is the sharpest expression of discontent against Iran's leadership for years.

Police have detained more than 100 reformers, including the brother of former President Mohammad Khatami, a leading reformer said on Sunday. A police official confirmed some detentions.

Ahmadinejad was planning celebrations in the capital later on Sunday. His unexpectedly overwhelming victory and its violent aftermath raised fresh questions about how Iran will respond to US President Barack Obama's diplomatic overtures.

Analysts said the election result would disappoint Western powers trying to convince the world's fifth biggest oil exporter to halt nuclear activities they suspect are aimed at making bombs. Obama had urged Iran's leadership "to unclench its fist".

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner of the vote, which is disputed by his reformist rival Hossein Mousavi.

International reaction poured in soon after the poll results surfaced. France is "very worried" about the situation in Iran and "regrets" authorities' "somewhat brutal reaction" to the street protests that flared up following the announcement of presidential election results.

Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has warned that the aftermath of the election "could leave lasting scars."

Kouchner warned that in Iran, "there will be no solutions in brutality or in the infinite development of military activities." He said the West needed to engage with Iran's civil society and win its trust.

Kouchner was speaking to reporters Sunday after a meeting with the United States' Mideast envoy, George Mitchell.