Iran Declares Election Fight Over

Iran's powerful Guardian Council has warned the opposition to no longer protest the disputed presidential vote, one day after upholding the re-election of incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Abbasali Kadkhodai during a press conference in Tehran, 30 Jun 2009A spokesman for the Council, Abbasali Kadkhodai, told reporters Tuesday "the file on the presidential election is closed," and the government will take action against those who continue to protest the results.

Meanwhile, President Ahmadinejad again criticized foreign powers over their response to the greatest unrest to take place in Iran since the since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Hardline Islamic cleric Ahmad Khatami on Tuesday also denounced those still opposing the Guardian's Council decision as against the government. Last week, Khatami called for those leading the "rioters" to be punished without mercy.

Defeated presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi has called for the results of the June 12 election to be annulled.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday a "huge credibility gap" remains among Iranians about the disputed polls.

Clinton declined to say whether Washington will formally recognize Mr. Ahmadinejad's re-election, and she would not say whether the post-election unrest has ended U.S. hopes of engaging Iran on its nuclear program and other issues.


Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.