Iran puts anti-Ahmadinejad ’rioters’ on trial

The trial of a group of people accused of rioting after the controversial re-election in June of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iran’s president began on Saturday at a revolutionary court in Tehran.

The trial of a group of people accused of rioting after the controversial re-election in June of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iran’s president began on Saturday at a revolutionary court in Tehran.

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Their prosecution in a revolutionary court comes as Ahmadinejad, who is due to be sworn in on August 5, sought to ease political tensions by denying any rift with the country’s all-powerful supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The official IRNA news agency said the trial of a group of “rioters” had begun, but it did not specify the exact number of those in the dock.

Iranian news networks said earlier that about 30 people accused of rioting in the aftermath of Ahmadinejad’s re-election were to face prosecution from Saturday.

Media reports say the accused face charges of having “participated in riots, acting against national security, disturbing public order, vandalising public and government property and having ties with counter-revolutionary groups.”
The post-election violence, mainly in Tehran, left around 30 people dead and hundreds wounded, Iranian officials said.

IRNA said according to prosecuters those on trial include people whose photographs were taken while “committing the crimes.”