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Rafsanjani signals reconciliation

DUBAI: The Iranian opposition’s challenge to the government over the disputed results of the recent presidential elections virtually ended on Saturday, with a body headed by the former President, Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, calling upon defected candidates to pursue legal channels to air their protests.

During the run-up to the polls, Ayatollah Rafsanjani, a highly influential cleric, had staunchly supported opposition leader Mir-Hosain Mousavi, against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who eventually won the elections for a second successive term, according to the official tally.

But the Expediency Council, an influential Iranian institution, which Ayatollah Rafsanjani heads, in a statement on Saturday said: “As the best and most appropriate way, the Expediency Council asks all to observe the law and resolve conflicts and disputes [concerning the election] through legal channels.”

The Council urged all the three losing presidential candidates to fully cooperate with the Guardian Council, the body which supervised the elections.

However, it also called upon the Guardian Council to precisely follow the complaints, respond to suspicions, and to use an appropriate team of experts with the aim of building the necessary confidence in the society, Iran’s state-run Press TV reported.

The Expediency Council’s statement follows the formal acceptance by Mr. Mousavi not to stage street demonstrations in violation of the legal system.

A spate of demonstrations had rocked Tehran and other major Iranian cities after the results of the June 12 elections were announced.

Iranian authorities have blamed foreign western powers of instigating post-election violence, and singled out Britain for causing maximum damage.

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