Despite Protests, Ahmadinejad Consolidates Grip on Power: Via The Lede Blog - NYTimes.com .

Last week, even before he was officially endorsed as the winner of Iran’s disputed June 12 presidential election, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad quietly assigned himself new powers by taking direct control of the country’s intelligence ministry.

According to a report published on the English-language Web site of Iran’s Parliament on Saturday, after Mr. Ahmadinejad fired the previous minister, Gholam-Hussein Mohseni-Ejei, he appointed himself “caretaker minister.”

Even if he does not intend to hold on to the position, Mr. Ahmadinejad is in direct control of the intelligence ministry at a sensitive moment, as the regime attempts to convict leading members of the opposition that it has charged with conspiring to overthrow the government on behalf of foreign powers.
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Iran lawyer says concerned about detained reformers - washingtonpost.com: Via Reuters on washingtonpost.com .

TEHRAN (Reuters) - An Iranian defense lawyer voiced concern on Wednesday about two leading reformers detained shortly after last month's disputed election, saying he did not know where being held and who was holding them.

Lawyer Saleh Nikbakht says he represents several pro-reform activists who were detained after the June 12 presidential vote, including Mostafa Tajzadeh and Behzad Nabavi, both allies of opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi.

"We know nothing about their whereabouts and which body has arrested them," Nikbakht told Reuters. "The families ... have not been able yet to meet with them and expressed their concerns over the conditions of the two."
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Iran opposition leader to attend Friday prayers: daily: Via washingtonpost.com .

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi will attend Friday prayers this week in his first official public appearance since last month's disputed presidential vote, a newspaper said on Tuesday.

The Etemad daily said the prayers at Tehran University will be led by former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a rival of re-elected hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and one of the four Tehran Friday prayer leaders.

Another former president and supporter of Mousavi, reformist Mohammad Khatami, will also attend, the newspaper said.

"Mousavi and Khatami will attend the prayers this week led by Rafsanjani. This will be their first public appearance in an official event after the (June 12) election," said the daily, citing Mousavi's Facebook page. It also said Mousavi had urged his supporters to attend the sermon.
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Protests in Iran on key reform anniversary: Via CNN.com .

TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iranian pro-government Basij militia members dispersed crowds of protesters in Tehran Thursday -- sometimes with force -- according to a journalist on the scene.

The demonstration is taking place on the 10th anniversary of a student uprising that, at the time, posed the biggest threat to the Islamic regime since its inception in 1979.

An estimated 2,000 to 3,000 people crowded the streets and headed toward Tehran University, the site of the 1999 student uprising. Several protesters were hit on the arms and backs by the Basij, the journalist reported. The militia tried to convince one man, whose face was bleeding, to get into an ambulance but he refused.

Earlier the commander of Iran's security forces warned that police would "strongly confront" anyone planning to protest on the anniversary of a pivotal point in Iran's reformist movement.

In an interview with the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), Maj. Gen. Esmaeel Ahmadi Moghadam said authorities would confront protesters and that no demonstration permit had been issued for Thursday.
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VOA News - Former Iranian President: Election 'Coup' Against Democracy: Via Voice of America.

Former Iranian president and leading reformist Mohammad Khatami says the outcome of Iran's disputed presidential election is a "coup" against democracy.

Khatami's statement Wednesday comes two days after Iran's powerful Guardian Council upheld the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Defeated presidential candidates Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi also criticized the election outcome Wednesday, calling the government led by Mr. Ahmadinejad "illegitimate."
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