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Iran conservative paper urges Mousavi be tried for treason

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] A prominent conservative newspaper in Iran urged in an editorial Saturday that opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi and former reformist president Mohammad Khatami be tried for crimes against the nation. The piece was written by Kayhnan newspaper's chief editor Hossein Shariatmadari, and places responsibility for the protests following recent elections on the two men while alleging the existence of documents showing Mousavi and his supporters acted under American orders. The newspaper is supervised by the Office of the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Shariatmadari was appointed by Khamenei himself. Khamenei has publicly expressed his support for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after the June elections. The Iranian government on Wednesday barred publication of the opposition Etemad-e-Melli newspaper, linked to opposition candidate Mehdi Karroubi, in an attempt to quash anti-government reporting in the country. International journalists in the country have also been ordered to stay indoors.The ongoing post-election protests have reprotedly resulted in at least 17 deaths and hundreds of arrests. Iranian authorities have said that those arrested will be tried by the courts. Human rights groups have characterized the arrests as political repression, saying that Iranian authorities are using the protests to "engage in what appears to be a major purge of reform-oriented individuals."

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on July 04, 2009 (boomark / email).