The Latest from Iran (28 June): The Regime Fails to Wrap Up the Election

The Latest from Iran Crisis (29 June): The Challenge Survives

NEW Latest Video: Rally at Ghobar Mosque (28 June)
The Iran Crisis (Day 17): What to Watch For Today

NEW UPDATE Iran: A Tale of Two Twitterers
Text: Mousavi Letter to Guardian Council (27 June)
Text: Mousavi Letter to Overseas Supporters (24 June)
The Latest from Iran (27 June): Situation Normal. Move Along.

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2100 GMT: Report that the eight Iranian employees of the British Embassy, detained this morning, have been released.

1900 GMT: The Rafsanjani Speech. Tehran Bureau's Muhammad Sahimi echoes our analysis (see 1655 GMT), “Rafsanjani breaking his silence. I read what Rafsanjani said. It was not saying much. He was saying the standard things, ‘the complaints must be addressed.’ He also talked about foreign roles, but did not say much. It is not clear where he stands.”

1745 GMT: Mir Hossein Mousavi was not at the rally today but it is reported that, via his mobile phone, he addressed them on loudspeakers.

BBC Persian is summarising former President Khatami's latest statement that all sides should avoid provocation and that a satisfactory resolution is possible through legal measures.

1705 GMT: While her father Hashemi Rafsanjani was setting out his public position, Faezeh Hashemi was attending (and reportedly speaking at) the Ghobar mosque rally. Mehdi Karroubi was also present.

1655 GMT: A summary of the Rafsanjani speech has now been posted online (in Farsi) by the Islamic State News Agency. The former President appears to have (cleverly) maintained his political space: he criticised "mysterious agents" who tried to create discord but also that the majority of demonstrators, when cognisant of those conspiracies, had been "neutral". Thus, his praise of the Supreme Leader sat alongside his recognition of protest as legitimate.

1635 GMT: Breaking news that former President Hashemi Rafsanjani has finally emerged in public with his first significant post-election statement: he is reported to have called for "elaborate processing of legal complaints in cooperation with candidates". He has also praised the Supreme Leader for extending the deadline for filing of complaints.

1630 GMT: Latest from Ghobar mosque. Now reports of "50,000" in vicinity. Riot police are stationed in a school nearby. Mir Hossein Mousavi has not yet shown up.

Report that lawyer/university professor Kambiz Norouzi arrested in front of the mosque.

1622 GMT: Associated Press is reporting the use of tear gas on the crowd in front of Ghobar mosque. The chant from the crowd, referring in memoriam to Ayatollah Beheshti, killed in 1981, "Where are you Beheshti? Mousavi's left all alone."

1610 GMT: We've posted the first video from the Ghobar mosque rally (and the first significant video out of Iran in four days). Only a 26-second clip, but there look to be far more than the "5000" people mentioned by CNN.

1523 GMT: First report and picture of "memorial" rally at Ghobar mosque. Former President Khatami has spoken. The mosque is full and "tens of thousands" of people are on surrounding streets

1500 GMT: Detention Update. Dr. Ghorban Behzadian Nezhad, the head of Mir Hossein Mousavi's headquarters, has been released, but prominent actresses Homa Roosta and Mahtab Nasirpour have been arrested. A report (in Farsi) of those arrested at Laleh Park (see our 27 June updates) has now been posted.

1410 GMT: It Ain't Over. Here's another clue that the political battle continues, and it comes from no less than the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. Press TV is playing its dutiful role by headlining, "Iran Slams Western Interference", but the real significance comes in Khamenei's call on Iranian politicians to toe the proper line: “If the nation and political elite are united in heart and mind, the incitement of international traitors and oppressive politicians will be ineffective.” He once again tried to lay responsibility for opposition candidates for whipping up impressionable extremists: “The people's emotions, especially that of the youth, must not be toyed with and they should not be pitted against one another."

Easy to translate this: challengers like Mehdi Karroubi (1315 GMT), Mir Hossein Moussavi, and even the "conservative" Mohsen Rezaei (1405 GMT) have not bowed down to the Guardian Council.

1405 GMT: Mohsen Rezaei, the most "conservative" of the three challengers to President Ahmadinejad, has also refused to quiet his objections to the regime's handling of the post-election situation. His representative has accused the Ministry of Interior of acting against the law and told the head of the election commission that he should stop provoking public opinion.

1330 GMT: Bluster and Reality from Washington. David Axelrod, a key advisor to President Obama, has spoken about Iran in his national television interview this morning. He labelled President Ahmadinejad's recent criticisms of the US and Western countries as "bloviations" trying to cause "political diversions".

Having made the necessary rhetorical posturing, Axelrod could then put out the less palatable but pragmatic line: the US, as part of the "5+1" group, would attend talks in Paris with Iran over its nuclear programme.

1315 GMT: Karroubi Makes His Move. The first answer to the question we set this morning, "Will the Guardian Council's actions today close off the high-profile protest?", has now come. Presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi has issued a direct challenge to the Council, in effect saying it does not have the authority to rule.

Karroubi, like Mir Hossein Moussavi (and, from a different political direction, Ali Larijani), declared that the Council had lost the neutrality necessary to be a fair legislative-judicial court because certain members favoured President Ahmadinejad. He said (in the paraphrase of an Iranian translator), "The Guardian Council's actions in the past two weeks had significantly diminished their place in public opinion." The response to the calls for protest by former President Mohammad Khatami was "a big no" to the Council. Karroubi concluded, "The small section of votes assigned to me" would not stop his challenge.

1145 GMT: The internal situation has been further complicated this afternoon with news of the first approved public gathering in almost two weeks. A memorial nominally for Ayatolllah Mohammad Beheshti, a leader of the Islamic Revolution who was killed in a terrorist bombing in May 1981, will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. local time (1330 to 1530 GMT) at the Ghobar mosque in Tehran. The gathering will inevitably be projected by many as the memorial, so far denied by authorities, for those killed in post-election violence. Mir Hossein Mousavi will be attending the service.

1130 GMT: The media is dominated at the moment by the story, released this morning by Iranian state media, that eight Iranian personnel of the British Embassy have been detained.

While the development is of course serious for those arrested, it should be as a diversion from the internal conflict. There is still no information on the deliberations of the Guardian Council, which was supposed to issue its definitive  ruling on the Presidential election today.

Instead, Iranian media is offering a cocktail of stories of foreign intervention. In addition to the British Embassy story, Press TV's website is featuring "Ahmadinejad warns Obama over interference" and "Obama to fund anti-govt. elements in Iran: Report". (The latter story is based on a Friday article in USA Today.)

0725 GMT: We've posted an important document, Mir Hossein Mousavi's letter to the Guardian Council reiterating his challenge to the Presidential vote. Far from backing down, at least publicly, Mousavi has again called for a new election and called for a neutral arbitration panel rather than the Council's "special committee" to review the electoral process.

We've also posted Mousavi's letter, written on Wednesday, to his overseas supporters.

0600 GMT: As we note in our "What to Watch For Today" feature, Press TV's website is pushing yesterday's announcement of the Expediency Council, a body for legal and political resolution led by former President Hashemi Rafsanjani, calling on all campaigns to co-operate with the Guardian Council's "special committee" which is to hold an enquiry into the election. The Mousavi and Karroubi campaigns are holding out against appointment of a representative, however, because of doubts over the fairness and neutrality of the committee.

Even more interesting is CNN's return not only to the story, bumping Michael Jackson to #2, but to a highly critical position on the Iranian regime. Both its website and its current international broadcasts are highlighting the testimony of an Amnesty International official that the Basiji are taking injured demonstrators from hospitals. The claim follows a Friday report from Human Rights Watch of Basiji raiding homes and beating civilians, and Amnesty also has a list of detainees to add to that compiled by the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.

Iran: Hammer and Handshake

Immediate headlines from Tehran this afternoon may focus on the statement by Ayatollah Ahmed Khatami, who led Friday prayers in place of the Supreme Leader, that protesters would be dealt with forcefully. There may be, however, a second part of the message, one which promises accommodation behind the scenes.

Press TV's website is reporting prominently the statement of Grand Ayatollah Nasser Makarem-Shirazi calling for the post-election dispute to be settled through "national conciliation".

In a statement on his website Thursday, Makarem-Shirazi reinforced the official line of extremist trouble-making, "Extremely bitter events have occurred in the days following the magnificent 10th [presidential] election, and certain adventurists took advantage of the disputes between the honorable candidates." He also echoed the call of the Supreme Leader last Friday for "self-restraint".

The Grand Ayatollah was more explicit, however, in indicating that a deal might privately be struck to acknowledge the concerns and even demands of some critics of President Ahmadinejad's re-election: "Definitively, something must be done to ensure that there are no embers burning under the ashes, and (to ensure) that hostilities, antagonism and rivalries are transformed into amity and cooperation among all parties."

Speculation: while Ayatollah Ahmed Khatami was wielding the public hammer to smite the demonstrations, Press TV's emphasis on the Makarem-Shirazi statement is an indication of reassurance to key individuals. But whom? Former President Rafsanjani? Former head of the Republican Guard Mohsen Rezaie? Even a hand reached out to Mir Hossein Mousavi?

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2030 GMT: Tehran Bureau, which has been doing sterling work through this crisis, comes through again. It has just posted an invaluable guide to the Assembly of Experts, the one Iranian body that has the power to name (and to remove) the Supreme Leaders. Notable in the article is the dissection of the politics of a key member, the pro-Ahmadinejad Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi.

2025 GMT: A curious and, if true, troubling incident. It is alleged that 70 faculty members, having met with Mir Hossein Mousavi, were later arrested.

2015 GMT: An Interesting Development. The head of Iran's National Security Council, Saeed Jalili, is reported to have met former President Hashemi Rafsanjani and Presidential candidates Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mohsen Rezaei. No word on the specific topics of discussion.

1805 GMT: Report that Ardeshir Amir Arjman, who is in charge of Mousavi campain's legal matters, has been arrested.

1755 GMT: More on the "Neda" Story. The Iranian state line, put out through the Islamic Republic News Agency, is that "The marksmen had mistaken [Neda Agha Soltan] for the sister of one of the Monafeghin who had been executed in the province of Mazandaran some time ago." The "Monafeghin" are also known as the Mujahedin-e-Khalq, which has carried out a campaign of bombings and assassinations against the Iranian Government since 1979.

Notwithstanding the curiosity that a relative of a dead terrorist is apparently under a death sentence in Iran, the story is one of many trying to absolve Iranian authorities of blame. Another version is that an "unknown gunman" targeted Neda to cause disruption and blacken the name of th Iranian establishment.

1750 GMT: Reuters is now reporting on the statement on Presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi's website: "I do not accept the result and therefore consider as illegitimate the new government. Because of the irregularities, the vote should be annulled."

1745 GMT: The Guardian is reporting that authorities have ordered the family of Neda Agha Soltan out of their Tehran home after shocking images of her death were circulated around the world.

1728 GMT: Press TV not reporting any violence. Instead, they are highlighting yesterday's IRIB inteview with Tehran's mayor, Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf. Qalibaf  had urged relevant Iranian officials to authorize peaceful opposition rallies, saying the public should have an outlet to express its opinions. Legalizing street rallies, he reasoned, would prevent 'saboteurs who draw weapons and kill people'.

1713 GMT: BBC website very slow/cautious to react- only now breaking the news of today's violence (and still nothing on main page)

1625 GMT: The Guardian's Washington bureau chief Ewen Macaskill reports that President Barack Obama appears to have sent a letter to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last month, ahead of its disputed election, calling for an improvement in relations.

1610 GMT: Twiitter update of the day from "Breaking News" - "JUST IN -- Iranian state television: Security forces broke up two protests, one of 200 and one of 50 people, but no violence reported

1606 GMT: From CNN “They were waiting for us,” the source said. “They all have guns and riot uniforms. It was like a mouse trap.”

1601 GMT: Via Twitter "Lalezar Sq same as Baharestan, unbelevable, ppls murdered everywhere... everybody under arrest & cant move"

1548 GMT: Via Twitter "In Baharestan we saw militia with axe choping ppl like meat - blood everywhere - like butcher - Allah Akbar"

1547 GMT: Iran witness to CNN: "Many people with broken arms, legs, heads -- blood everywhere -- pepper gas like war"

1545 GMT: Stream of reports via Twitter and to CNN that protesters are beaten beaten outside Iran Parliament building. Unconfirmed reports of gunfire.

1500 GMT: Al Arabiya is reporting the death of a female protester at Bahraestan Square.

Press TV is ignoring the demonstration, focusing on the Supreme Leader's call today for "law and order" and the claims of the Ministry of Interior that it found documents proving "certain foreign ministries" were behind the opposition to the election result. However, its third item is that "post-election unrest has killed 20 people, including eight Basij members", all of whom --- according to "inside sources" --- were killed by gunfire.

1445 GMT: Andrew Sullivan's running blog has posted a set of Twitter comments on today's gathering in Baharestan Square in front of the Iranian Parliament building: "I see many ppl with broken arms/legs/heads - blood everywhere - pepper gas like war...Ppl run into alleys and militia standing there waiting - from 2 sides they attack ppl in middle of alleys...saw 7/8 militia beating one woman with baton on ground - she had no defense nothing -... So many ppl arrested - young & old - they take ppl away....Just in from Baharestan Sq - situation today is terrible - they beat the ppls like animals....Ppl gathered in Baharestan but police & plain cloths don’t let the core of the rally to form."

1205 GMT: Start time of demonstrations was revised to 4:30 p.m. local time (1200 GMT), according to Mehdi Karroubi's Facebook page.

1150 GMT: No word yet about today's demonstrations. The Ministry of the Interior continues to hammer away at the line that Britain, the US, and Israel are behind the protests, with the US Central Intelligence Agency providing funding. Some of those detained are "confirmed" as agents of foreign governments.

1145 GMT: There is an intriguing report that President Ahmadinejad met last night with "some well-known" members of Parliament, who offers their congratulations on his victory. The intriguing part is that among those who did not attend was the Speaker of Parliament, Ali Larijani.

1030 GMT: The BBC reports the latest statement from the Supreme Leader: "I had insisted and will insist on implementing the law on the election issue....Neither the establishment nor the nation will yield to pressure at any cost."

1025 GMT: Indications, just over an hour before they are scheduled to begin, that this afternoon's protests in Tehran will take place not only in front of Parliament but in five other locations: the Vali-e Asr, Enghelab, Vanak, Tajrish, Sadehgieh streets and squares.

0935 GMT: In a sharp, effective analysis, Tehran Bureau considers "how Mr. Mousavi and the reformists should go forward". Noting the issues that we're pondering, such as the tension within the Government and "conservative" ranks, and warning against "large-scale violence", the article concludes:

The best strategy for developing the coalition is, therefore, a campaign focused on a narrow goal that is achievable, but also one that opens the door for making deeper and more meaningful changes to the current system. At present this goal is the annulment of the election and holding a new one monitored by objective and neutral observers. If that goal is achieved, that itself will be a great setback for the hard-liners and supporters of Mr. Ahmadinejad.

0855 GMT: Human Rights Watch has released a statement pointing to the appointment of "a notoriously abusive Iranian prosecutor, Saeed Mortazavi" to oversee the investigation of detainees as a sign "that the authorities are preparing to bring trumped-up charges against its opponents".

0820 GMT: Claims that some detainees have been released from Evin Prison, but authorities are concentrating on holding students.

0815 GMT: BBC Persian Service is reporting that four members of the Iranian national football team have been "retired" after wearing green wristbands in their recent World Cup qualifying match with South Korea.

0800 GMT: Engagement Suspended. Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has offered the first substantial sign of the effect of the political crisis on US-Iran relations. He will not be going to Italy for discussions on the situation in Afghanistan, a vital arena for co-operation between Washington and Tehran.

0635 GMT: The Rezaei shift continues: his website is claiming that former President Hashemi Rafsanjani has not gone to Qom to lobby for the support of clerics against the Khamenei-Guardian Council position.

0630 GMT: Press TV English has now broken its Iran silence, venturing to mention the Guardian Council's five-day extension and the Rezaei withdrawal of his complaint because of "the political and security interests of the nation".

Morning Update 0530 GMT: After a Tuesday when there was less open protest but a lot of movement behind the scenes in Iran, as well as the high-profile statement from President Obama, a slower start to today.

CNN features Presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi's open letter criticising Iranian media and charging, ""You know well that those who support Mr. Ahmadinejad's government today are promoters of fanatic and Taliban-like Islam." It also notes the Guardian Council's five-day extension of the recount but gives far less attention to former President Khatami's "action plan".

Unsurprisingly, state-run Press TV's website plays up the good news that, after the Guardian Council's extension, Presidential candidate Mohsen Rezaei has withdrawn his complaint about vote fraud. It also has a notable story that a "headquarters" for the planning of unrest has been discovered by Iranian security forces. Activity in the building on 7 Tir Square, ostensibly used for the Mir Hossein Mousavi campaign, proves the intervention of "foreign elements". (There continues to be a shutdown on Press TV English's broadcasts on any news concerning Iran.)

(The story should be matched up with reports that there was a major raid Tuesday on the pro-Mousavi newspaper Kamaleh with approximately 25 staff arrested.)

On the streets, there are no reports yet of any "surging" of the Bazaar, as the Khatami actino plan advocates. As with previous days, it is late afternoon (4 p.m. local time) when key public events may start, in this case, a rally in front of the Iranian Parliament building. Information is still getting through from Iran via Twitter and e-mail, but there has been a sharp drop in video (although we've just picked up apparent footage of yesterday's protests) and still images. E-mail correspondents are also often guarded in their comments, given the possibility of Government surveillance.

Behind the scenes, where there was much to consider on Tuesday (see yesterday's set of stories), manoeuvres continues both between the opposition and Government camps and within the Government's ranks (for a guide, see in particular the 23 June story, "Khamenei v. Rafsanjani?", and the subsequent comments). We've received new information overnight and will be evaluating it later today.

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2125 GMT: We're taking some downtime. Thanks to all who followed us today and gave us feedback and information. More from about 0530 GMT.

2115 GMT: Reports that Iranian newspaper Keyhan has called for the arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi, citing more than 2000 complaints.

2100 GMT: The Guardian Council-Khamenei manoeuvre for a five-day extension of the recount gets a reward: Presidential candidate Mohsen Rezaei withdraws his complaint about electoral fraud.

1830 GMT: Crackdown, then "Breathing Space". Iranian state media have been reporting that the Supreme Leader has granted the Guardian Council's request for five extra days to recount the Presidential vote. This is a bit curious, to say the least, since the Council was saying only yesterday that there was no possibility of the result being overturned.

Interpretation? It appears that opposition pressure, both in private maneouvres such as the Mousavi visit to Qom (with the follow-up endorsement of the candidate by the Association of Combatant Clerics), the public plans for marches tomorrow and Thursday, and the even more public Karroubi and Khatami initiatives today have unsettled the Iranian leadership.

They haven't broken the protest movement. And --- although this may be only a pawn in the chess game --- they have incurred the rhetorical wrath of the international community for the violence of recent days. Throw in the still-to-be-determined "Neda" symbolic factor, and you have a regime trying to stall developments.

Now the full White House strategy to maintain flexiblity on Iran unfolds. Obama, in a pre-planned, tips his hat to the power of the Internet and "new media" by asking Nico Pitney, who has blogging on Iran for The Huffington Post, to pass on a question from the Iranian people.

It's a nice move which ensure Obama can pay heed to those "Iranian people" and maintain his position. The question, "Will Obama deal with Ahmadinejad?" is handled with, "The thing for the Iranian Government to consider is legitimacy in the eyes of its own people....Ultimately this is up to the Iranian people to decide who their leadership is going to be."

The vague far-from-footnote is in Obama's, "What we can do is to say unequivocally is there are sets of international norms and principles about violence, about dealing with peaceful dissent."

So what does the President do if demonstrations tomorrow and/or Thursday are met with more "violence" by Iranian security forces?

1638 GMT: First question tests Obama on steps, rather than rhetoric, on Iran: Is there any "red line" that can be crossed that would suspend US engagement with Iran?

The President sidesteps the question and falls back on "rights and responsibilities" language in referring to the Iranian Government before issuing a holding comment: "We don't know how they're going to respond yet. That's what we're waiting to see."

To the follow-up question, "Should there be any consequences?", Obama holds his line, "The world is bearing witness" to the events in Iran.

1630 GMT: President Obama has just opened his press conference with "a few words" on Iran. The world is "outraged and appalled" at the treatment of protesters. So while the US "respects the sovereignty" of Iran, everyone must "speak out" about the violence wielded against the demonstrators. The Iranian Government "must heed the will of its own people and govern through consensus, not force."

Nothing new here: pointed general rhetoric to express concern and even anger about the images witnessed in recent days but no specific actions or even threats to punish the Iranian Government and suspend Obama's tentative "engagement". The coded response to those who are pressing for US intervention? "The Iranian people can speak for themselves."

Obama extended the statement by denouncing Iran's use of a fictional "Western intervention" to justify its repression, and he returned to the denunciation of the Iranian Government's abuse of rights. This is, however, a stay-the-course statement while trying to fend off domestic critics who want that "Western intervention" to become fact rather than fiction.

1510 GMT: Reports that Mir Hossein Mousavi's Facebook page says he will attend Wednesday's march (4 p.m. local time) to Iranian Parliament in Baharestan Square.

1505 GMT: Further on that British sideshow (1045 GMT). The tit-for-tat diplomatic "happy slapping" has begun: Iran expels two British Embassy staff so London sends two Iranian diplomats packing. Believe it or not, however, this is not as bad as it could have been: if Tehran had unilaterally pulled its Ambassador (a de facto suspension of relations), that would have been more serious than this choreographed manoeuvre.

1410 GMT: We've just posted urgent news on a purported "action plan" by former President Mohammad Khatami for protests.

1408 GMT: From an Iranian activist via Twitter: "We are having difficulty getting updates to u as so many of our contacts been arrested - life here is v/v/dangerous now."

1315 GMT: More coming in on the next moves of the opposition movement. Reports that supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi will assemble in front of the Iranian Parliament building tomorrow at 4 p.m. local time. Karroubi has also written an open letter to Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting: ""Is your mission the inverse representation of the beating and killing of people by plain cloths [paramilitary Basiji]?"

There are reports that people are gathering in Azadi Square and building blockades and that anti-riot vans are on their way to the scene.

BBC Persian is reporting that all staff, not just the editor-in-chief (see 1215 GMT) of the pro-Mousavi newspaper Kalameh have been arrested. Other journalists have also been detained today.

1300 GMT: This hour's Press TV English coverage of Iran (see updates throughout the day)? Nothing. Not a whisper. Nothing to see here, move along.

1215 GMT: More arrests of journalists. The latest detainees are Seyed Alireza Beheshti Shirazi, editor-in-chief of the pro-Mousavi newspaper Kalameh and his son. There are also reports that a reporter for either The Washington Post or The Washington Times has been taken into custody.

1145 GMT: We've just posted a discussion between two Enduring America colleagues, Steve Hewitt and Chris Emery, on whether 2009 in Iran is an update of the events in 1979.

1125 GMT: The Financial Times of London reports that Kargozaran, "a political party affiliated with Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani" has called upon Mir Hossein Moussavi to form a “political bloc” for a long-term campaign to undermine the “illegitimate” Government.

1109 GMT: Press TV English's blackout continues: not a word in its current newscast on Iran. The website is more forthcoming: headlines are of the Guardian Council's statement that "there has been no record of any major irregularity" in the Presidential vote and of President Ahmadinejad taking the oath of office between 26 July and 19 August.

1045 GMT: A Very British Sideshow: as we await further news on developments in public and behind the scenes, the diversionary story of Britain --- that most sinister country, according to the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khameini --- continues.

Last night, the Foreign Office advised British citizens that only those with "essential" reasons should travel to Iran, and the British Embassy began advising families of staff that they might have to be removed from the country.

This morning, Iranian state media were playing up news of a forthcoming rally by students in front of the British Embassy. Later reports, however, said that the rally had been cancelled as it had been denied a permit by the Ministry of the Interior.
Meanwhile, there were reports --- soon denied by the Iranian Government --- that the Iranian Ambassador to the UK had been recalled.

Significance? It's possible that the Supreme Leader, and subsequent Government showcases such as yesterday's Foreign Ministry conference, have overplayed the "Western threat" card. It's one thing to deploy the weapon of rhetoric, another to raise the prospect of violence against Western nationals. So the Iranian leadership, which has been careful not to attack the US Government as the primary enemy of Tehran, may be edging away from a precipice in relations.

0800 GMT: CNN's International Desk reports, "Reports from inside Iran say the problem in organizing a strike is communicating the messsage to shops & businesses not on Web."

0730 GMT: There's a curious missing-of-the-point in current media coverage, which is focusing on the Guardian Council's pre-emptive declaration that any vote recount will not change the outcome of the Presidential election. Since this move is about as unexpected as the Sun rising in the East, it might be more productive to consider how the protest movement is already looking beyond the Council to its next public and private political challenges.

0700 GMT: Press TV English's current approach is to ignore events in Iran. They are headlining US drone strikes on Pakistan, the US military in Afghanistan, and US unemployment, but not a word on their own backyard.

0630 GMT: Lara Setrakian (see her report on Monday's demonstrations in 0600 GMT update) also writes of protest resignations by faculy at Amir Kabir University in Tehran and Sani Sharif University. These follow the resignation of up to 120 faculty members at Tehran University and other academics across the country.

Morning Update 0600 GMT: Little change from our late night update. We're still waiting for reports on any general strike, but political developments are pointing towards a key rally on Thursday. The support for Mousavi from the Association of Combatant Clerics, while still limited to "reformist" backing, showed that he could mobilise important groups to come out into the open, and the opposition campaign continues to evade the tough Government restrictions to get out information and organise. Yesterday, that was shown by the statement from Presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi, disseminated widely, for the Guardian Council to declare the election void.

The hard part, of course, is on the ground. The Government's priority will be to prevent any repeat of the million-strong march of 15 June; conversely, the protest movement will look for a gathering large in both size and symbolism.

Behind the scenes, there is little sign of shifting apart from the Association's endorsement of Mousavi after his trip to Qom. Former Presidential Rafsanjani remains very quiet. The Supreme Leader has let others take the public lead after his Friday address, and President Rafsanjani is silent (only speculation, but I think he is being kept under wraps for fear that he will further inflame opposition).

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Juan Cole has posted the following live blog from an Iranian correspondent, writing as Ayatollah Khamenei spoke on Friday. There are minor but significant corrections to our own live blog: for example, Mohsen Rezaei was the one opposition Presidential candidate who attended. There are important impressions of conflict, "Uncharacteristically, the Leader, gets hot...folks here and there interrupt his speech and he tells them to listen," and forthcoming violence, "The green light has been given to the [paramilitary basij to, excuse my language, to kick ass, chew gum, and take names."

Rough notes...The event is like the old Red Square May Day parades. We look to see who is there, and who is not. Dr. A, Larajani, Haddad Adel, the top leadership is all there. Karrobi and Mousavi are not...but Rezaei is, sitting in the back of the VIP section.

Supreme Leader emphasizes that difference in opinion, difference in program between candidates is normal, natural. But beware, for months the enemy had been laying the groundwork to label these elections a fraud. These elections which, with the exception of the vote for the Islamic Republic in Spring of 1979, were without rival. Iran represents a third way, between dictatorships and the false democracies of the rest of the world.

He speaks of the violence, it is clear that they are laying the groundwork for a crackdown. Chaos has to be stopped. The way of the law, rah-e qanun. There are laws and we cannot allow the killing or violence to continue, either by basijis or opposition (throughout the speech he condemns the mistakes of both sides, but as I will soon make clear, comes down in favor of one side).

Supreme Leader names Nouri and Rafsanjani by name, a remarkable act by his own admission. He lauds the long record of service of both men to the country, says that he has known Rafsanjani 52 years. Leader says while there is corruption in Iran, how can anyone say that Raf. is corrupt? Stands up for him. This is clearly a slap on the wrist to the current president, for what Dr. A[hmadinejad] said about Nouri and Rafsanjani during the debates. It is not Iranian, not appropriate for such ugliness to penetrate politics. Good words were spoken during the debates, but unfortunately nastiness and un-Islamic comments were made and we need to be careful...

Mousavi, Karrobi, and Rezaei were described by their previous post and experiences, they were all defended by the Leader as good men devoted to the I[slamic] R[epublic of] I[ran]. They are almost incidental, it is so so clear that this is a grudge match, beef, between Hashemi and Dr. A. The Leader himself said as much, saying that there has been a difference in opinion between the two men stretching back to 2005. Then came the kicker, the turning point, one sentence followed by a great cheer from the audience: There is a difference in opinion between the two, and my opinion (or preference) is closer to the president than Rafsanjani.

The Leader made his choice clear.

The green light has been given to the basij to, excuse my language, to kick ass, chew gum, and take names.

A particularly juicy twist, turning night into day and a shot at the U.S. and the 2000 elections, says that you can say that cheating occurs when the difference in the votes is close, 100,000 or 500,000, or 1 million. But 11 million? How can that be cheating?

But we have a process, we will count the votes with the representatives of the candidates present, the Guardian Council will fulfill its obligation.

More night-into-day-ism: Says that there are winners and losers in elections, and for the losers to now want the "rules" to be changed or modified is wrong.

Qanun, qanun, qanun. Law, law, law. It's unnerving the emphasis on the need for law and order.

By the end, and uncharacteristically, the Leader, gets hot...folks here and there interrupt his speech and he tells them to listen. When talking about U.S. and the west and the efforts of a certain American Zionist to launch a velvet revolution in Georgia, he says that these "aqmaqha" or idiots think that they can do the same in Iran...to use such language is really shocking in the Iranian context.

Bizarre ending, ends in weeping, because the Leader says that I love you more than you know...

Overall, it does not look good, worse than it ever was... "