TEHERAN - A POWERFUL Iranian cleric said on Friday that British embassy local staff arrested for allegedly stoking unrest after the June election will be put on trial, a move that prompted coordinated protests from European governments.

Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband said he was 'urgently seeking clarification' about the announcement as governments across the 27-nation European Union called in Iranian ambassadors.

'In these incidents, their embassy had a presence, some people were arrested. Naturally they will be put on trial, they have made confessions,' Ahmad Jannati, head of Iran's Guardians Council, said at Friday prayers.

He did not say how many would go on trial or disclose the charges. Nine local staff at the British embassy were arrested late last month.

London has said that seven have been released while Iranian state television has said only one remains in custody. Mr Miliband said he was 'deeply concerned' about staff being detained.

'We have noted the remarks by Ayatollah Jannati suggesting that some of our local staff in Iran may face trial,' he said in a statement.

'We are urgently seeking clarification from the appropriate Iranian authorities. I intend to speak to Foreign Minister (Manouchehr) Mottaki.

'We are confident that our staff have not engaged in any improper or illegal behaviour. We remain deeply concerned about the two members of our staff who remain in detention in Iran.'

Teheran accused the embassy employees of instigating riots in the unrest that followed the disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, which his rivals said was rife with fraud and irregularities.

Mr Jannati, who is close to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and is a strong Ahmadinejad supporter, said 'enemies' had been plotting a 'velvet revolution' in the Islamic republic.

He said London had predicted 'street riots' around the June 12 election and had warned Britons to stay away from public places.

Ayatollah Khamenei has described Britain, which has long had turbulent relations with Iran and a lengthy history of mistrust, as the 'most evil' of its enemies. -- AFP