Thousands of people, one holding a poster of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, (left), attend a state-organised rally in central Tehran on Tuesday. -- PHOTO: AP
TEHERAN - THOUSANDS of people waving Iranian flags and pictures of the country's supreme leader massed on Tuesday at a rally organised by the clerical regime in an apparent attempt to reclaim the streets hours after saying it would recount some disputed presidential ballots.
Later, a 'massive' crowd supporting reformist challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi gathered in Vanak Square to the north, according to a correspondent for state-controlled English-language Press TV.
WASHINGTON - US PRESIDENT Barack Obama wants direct diplomacy with Iran despite violent protests after last week's disputed presidential election there.
'The president is committed to direct engagement with the Iranian government on issues of our national interests,' Mr Gibbs told reporters.
WASHINGTON - PRESIDENT Barack Obama on Tuesday downplayed differences between Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his election foe Mir Hossein Mousavi, saying both were hostile towards the United States.
Mr Obama made his latest comments in the Iranian crisis in an interview with CNBC television, after warning earlier that US 'meddling' in the aftermath of the disputed election could backfire.
The government barred foreign media from covering rallies in Teheran - even the state-organised demonstration, where government officials urged the crowd not to let the election divide the nation and said the unrest would not threaten Iran's Islamic system.
The Press TV correspondent at the pro-reform rally told the anchor by telephone that a crowd she called 'huge' and 'massive' was carrying banners of Mr Mousavi, wearing green headbands and covering their mouths in an apparent defense against tear gas. She said the crowd was marching farther north, toward Tajrish Square.
The clerical government appears to be trying to defuse popular anger and quash unrest by announcing the limited recount even as it cracks down on foreign media and shows its strength by calling supporters to the streets.
'This nation will protect and defend its revolution in any way,' Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, a prominent lawmaker and supporter of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said as the crowd in Vali Asr Square pumped their fists in the air and cheered in support, images on state-run television showed.
Iranian state media said the government organised the rally to demand punishment for those who protested violently after a larger demonstration on Monday by hundreds of thousands of Mousavi supporters.
Mr Mousavi has said he won Friday's balloting and has demanded the government annul Mr Ahmadinejad's victory and conduct a new election.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Monday the government would conduct an investigation into the election. The move seemed intended to calm protester anger but was followed by a rally of hundreds of thousands of people that presented one of the greatest challenges to Iran's government since it took power in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. -- AP
IRAN PROTEST MAP