Iran - domestic politics

Protestors' trials resume in Tehran

Article published on the 2009-09-14 Latest update 2009-09-14 17:06 TU

Iranian supporters of defeated presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi march in Tehran on 15 June, 2009.
(Photo: AFP)

Iran on Monday resumed trials of those who opposed the re-election of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad. Six protesters went on trial, including one of the student leaders whom the court told the media they should not name.

"I consider myself to be involved in the events that followed the election," A.M told the court, according to the Iranian Fars new agency. "Prior to the election, we were talking about issues like fraud and were also advocating massively against the officials of the regime. We also staged a rebellion against the regime... " Fars also said that the accused had apologised for all his wrongdoings and asked to be pardoned.

Iran has already put about 140 protesters on trial for opposing the re-election of Ahmadinejad which the opposition alleges was massively rigged.

Those charged have included leading reformist politicians, activists and employees of the British and French embassies.

Monday's trial comes after the authorities at the weekend freed Alireza Beheshti, a close aide to opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, a prominent lawyer who belongs to Nobel prize winner Shirin Ebadi's rights group, the Defenders of Human Rights Centre.

Dadkhah, a founder of the Human Rights Defenders Centre was freed on Sunday after posting bail of five billion rials (500,000 dollars). He was arrested in early July amid a crackdown on critics of Ahmadinejad and opposition supporters.