Mousavi: Result will establish tyranny

Tehran: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has won a crushing victory in Iran's landmark presidential election, according to the country's authorities, but his moderate challenger Mir Hussain Mousavi has warned of "tyranny" and protested that the result was rigged after a record turnout of 85 per cent.

As the official results were announced, baton-wielding riot police clashed with angry Mousavi supporters in some of the most serious unrest Tehran has seen in years.

Mousavi appealed directly to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but the country's supreme leader yesterday threw his weight behind Ahmadinejad, urging the other candidates to support the president. Mousavi said yesterday morning: "I personally strongly protest the many obvious violations and I'm warning I will not surrender to this dangerous charade. The result of such performance by some officials will jeopardise the pillars of the Islamic Republic and will establish tyranny."

But Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, called the result a "divine assessment" and called on all Iranians to support Ahmadinejad.

Speaking on state television yesterday, he said: "I assume that enemies intend to eliminate the sweetness of the election with their hostile provocation."

Riot police used batons to disperse Mousavi supporters who staged a sit-in near the interior ministry, where the results were announced. Up to 2,000 Mousavi supporters set fire to tyres and chanted "Mousavi take back our vote! What happened to our vote?" Reporters saw police attacking the demonstrators, and several protesters were carried away.

In another main street of Tehran, about 300 young people blocked the avenue by forming a human chain and chanted "Ahmadi, shame on you. Leave the government alone."

Mobile phone text messages were jammed, and international news websites including the Guardian and the BBC as well as pro-Mousavi websites were blocked or difficult to access. "The election was a game and full of lies," shouted one protester. "We can not do anything here," said another. "We can not believe the results and they are unacceptable." Mousavi, a former prime minister, had been widely expected to trounce the controversial incumbent, or at least do well enough to trigger a run-off. He claimed victory in an apparent attempt to pre-empt his rival.

But as the votes were still being counted late on Friday, aides to Ahmadinejad announced that he had won by an "unassailable" margin. Polling stations had stayed open four extra hours to meet the huge demand.

The interior minister, Sadeq Mahsouli, said yesterday afternoon that Ahmadinejad had won an overwhelming victory of 62.63 per cent to Mousavi's 33.75 per cent. Even in Mousavi's hometown province of Tabriz in north-west Iran, the ministry claimed Ahmadinejad received more than 60 per cent of the vote.

Early editions of Mousavi's paper Kalemeh Sabz, or the Green Word, and other reformist dailies declared Mousavi the victor but were ordered to change their headlines, local journalists said. The papers had blank spots where articles were removed. The outcome seems a grave setback to hopes for a solution to the looming international crisis over Iran's nuclear ambitions and for dtente with the US in response to Barack Obama's overtures. If the result stands it will spell an end to hopes for the greater freedoms and economic competence Mousavi had promised Iran's 72 million people.

Supporters had hoped Mousavi could have a similarly positive effect to Mohammad Khatami, who ushered in a period of change that ended when Ahmadinejad came from nowhere to capture the presidency four years ago.

- Guardian News & Media Limited

For number box

TEHRAN, June 13, 2009 (AFP) - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has won Iran's most hotly contested presidential election with 62.63 percent of the vote, Interior Minister Sadeq Mahsouli said on Saturday.

In second place behind the hardline incumbent was moderate ex-premier Mir Hossein Mousavi with 33.75 percent, he said.

He said 39.1 million votes were cast in the election on Friday, representing a turnout of 85 percent across the country.

"People said yes to the supreme leader's message," he said.

Ahmadinejad garnered a massive 24.5 million votes against 13.2 million for Mousavi.

However, Mahsouli said Mousavi had won more votes in the capital Tehran than his rival, without giving the exact figure.

The former head of the Revolutionary Guards Mohsen Rezai came third with 678,240 votes or 1.73 percent, while reformist ex-parliament speaker Mehdi Karroubi was last with 333,635 votes or 0.85 percent.