As Iran Unrest Goes On, Watch the Clerics

(NEWSER) - As his adversaries faced a mass court hearing condemned as a show trial, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was formally endorsed today for a second term as president of Iran. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei conducted the ceremony, which Mir Hossein Mousavi and other opposition figures boycotted. The endorsement came after state television screened courtroom confessions by two prominent reformists, who said they had "changed" since their arrest. They added that they had not been tortured, as supporters alleged. More»

(NEWSER) - Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the former Iranian president and most powerful supporter of Mir Hossein Mousavi, addressed thousands of young reformists in green today in a highly anticipated sermon that may trigger further protests. The visibly upset cleric demanded that all political prisoners be freed and lamented that "we had the chance to become the best, but we let it slip." Mousavi supporters interrupted Rafsanjani with shouts of "Freedom, freedom!" and some young reformists were tear-gassed, reports al-Jazeera. More»

(NEWSER) - A potentially big development on the Iran elections tonight: The nation's most prominent clerical group demanded that the results be thrown out and called the new government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad illegitimate, the New York Times reports. The decision may yet collapse under state pressure, but it's a defiant rebuke of the nation's supreme leader and the clearest sign yet of a serious split in the country's leadership. More»

Battle for Iran moves from the streets to corridors of power

(NEWSER) - Two weeks after Iran's allegedly rigged presidential election, the regime's clampdown has hardened and left opponents of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with few avenues for protest. The New York Times reports that shouts of "God is great" and "Death to the dictator" continue to echo at night in Tehran, but open defiance in the streets has waned. Many analysts now think Mir Hossein Mousavi will have to turn to the establishment, rather than the streets, to win power. More»

(NEWSER) - Iran is calm but tense today as police freed four family members of a former president and important Iranian cleric, the Los Angeles Times reports. But the oldest daughter of Hashemi Rafsanjani, a key backer of challenger Mir-Hossein Mousavi, was not released by authorities in Tehran. Five members of Rafsanjani's family were arrested yesterday, illustrating a clerical divide between reformers like Rafsanjani and conservatives like Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. More»