Iran’s supreme leader backs poll result - Protest leaders ‘will be held responsible’

Iran’s supreme leader backs poll result - Protest leaders ‘will be held responsible’
By Roula Khalaf and Najmeh Bozorgmehr in Tehran
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009
Published: June 19 2009 12:29 | Last updated: June 19 2009 12:29
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5c7c61c8-5cac-11de-9d42-00144feabdc0.html


Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned the leaders of those protesting against the presidential elections that they would be held responsible for the unrest.

In a speech delivered during Friday prayers ,Ayatollah Khamenei insisted that the election result was fair and delivered the strongest approval yet of the declared winner, Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad.

The comments, designed to end the wave of protests that has rocked Iran over the past week, will come as a huge disappointment to the supporters of Mir-Hossein Moussavi, the reformist leader and candidate who says the election was stolen. The speech also delivers a chilling message to western governments that have seen the protests as having shaken the foundations of the Islamic regime.

“It is a wrong imagination if some think they can create a lever of pressure against the regime with streets rallies and can force the system’s officials to succumb to their demands,” he said. “The consequences [street rallies], if they continue, will be directly with the commanders behind the scene,” he said.

The ideologically-motivated members of the basij, the voluntary arm of the elite Revolutionary Guards who have taken charge of security in the streets, were present at the prayers and could now be emboldened to clamp down further. But Ayatollah Khamenei blamed the protests’ leaders “for any blood and chaos”.

Ayatollah Khamenei spent most of the dramatic, defiant speech, designed to underline the power of his office, the ultimate authority in Iran, delivering the message that the Islamic republic was as strong and legitimate as ever.

He described all the candidates as part of the Islamic regime, and none as presenting a challenge to it, and the election itself as proof of the legitimacy of the system. “The four candidates are from the regime … I know them all and have worked with them…” he said.

But he insisted that he would not accept “illegal innovations,” in apparent reference to Mr Moussavi’s demand for a re-run of last week’s disputed election.

The televised electoral debates during the campaign and the vibrant rallies were all signs, he added, of Iranians’ faith in the Islamic system.

“The trust in the Islamic republic system became clear in this election,” he said. “The enemies’ aim is to take away this trust from people so the turnout goes down and legitimacy is stripped from the system. This damage … cannot be compared to any other damage.”

He warned that the international environment was at a sensitive, historic juncture and that politicians inside Iran should not raise tensions and radicalise the political atmosphere, lest they end up serving the objectives of Iran’s enemies, described as “hungry wolves.”

Ayatollah Khamenei ridiculed those western countries which thought a “velvet revolution” could be masterminded in Iran like in Georgia. “Where are you comparing Iran with? Our enemy still does not know Iran.”

Ayatollah Khamenei lent the president strong support, praising his record and saying that he was “closer” to his own views.

He dismissed the criticism levelled against Mr Ahmadi-Nejad during the electoral campaign, telling Iranians that they must not call him a liar or spread fake allegations about his government’s performance.

“These are all wrong. The president was called superstitious and a fortune teller. These are shameless allegations. Law and morality were trampled on” during the campaign, he said.

His only concession was to praise Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, the former president who has backed Mr Moussavi and has been locked in a power struggle with hardliners in the regime.

The leader dismissed Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s attacks against Mr Rafsanjani, and defended his revolutionary background. He did not, however, go as far as to defend Mr Rafsanjani’s family, saying that corruption allegations against his children would have to be addressed through legal channels.

He also condemned the attack against Tehran University’s dormitory over the weekend and regretted that it was done under his name.