Iranian riot policemen standing guard outside the British embassy in Tehran during a protest by supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad against European interference in the Islamic Republic's latest election results. --PHOTO: AFP
TEHERAN - IRAN has arrested eight local British embassy staff, media reports said on Sunday, a move that will further exacerbate tensions with the West over the post-election turmoil in the Islamic republic.
AGAINST the growing diplomatic tensions, Iranian opposition leaders are continuing to challenge the regime, rejecting a panel set up by election supervisory body the Guardians Council to hold a partial recount.
Mr Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mr Ahmadinejad's strongest rival, is still insisting on a new vote while another defeated candidate, Mr Mehdi Karroubi, has demanded an independent panel to probe irregularities.
The latest backlash against what Iranian leaders have said is foreign 'meddling' came as opposition leaders continued to defy the regime, rejecting a panel set up to hold a partial recount in the hotly-disupted presidential vote.
Iran has repeatedly accused Britain and the United States of stoking the unrest that swept the country after the June 12 election that returned hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power amid complaints it was rigged.
'Eight members of the local staff at the British embassy who had a considerable role in the recent riots have been arrested,' the Fars news agency said without quoting a source.
Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei added fuel to the fire, accusing European and American officials of making 'idiotic comments' about Iran, state television reported.
Britain reacted swiftly to the reports of the arrests, accusing Iran of 'harassment'. Last week, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki warned Iran may downgrade ties with Britain after the two governments expelled diplomats in a tit-for-tat move.
Iran has also expelled the BBC correspondent in Teheran and arrested a British-Greek journalist, and accused a number of other British passport-holders of involvement in riots.
The streets of Teheran appeared quiet on Sunday, with the authorities warning they would suppress any further protests over the vote that triggered the worst unrest since the 1979 Islamic revolution. -- AFP
