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Iran's Mousavi Accuses Govt. of Persecuting Opponents in Name of Islam

   26 April 2010
   Mir Hossein Mousavi in Tehran (File)

   Mir Hossein Mousavi in Tehran (File Photo)

   Iranian  opposition  leader  Mir  Hossein  Mousavi  has accused Iran's
   government of persecuting opponents in the name of Islam.

   In  comments  published on his website late Sunday, Mousavi said Islam
   does not beat anyone, arrest people or keep them in prison.

   He  also  rejected  accusations  by  Iranian  conservatives  that  the
   opposition  is  linked  to external forces, saying such allegations do
   not benefit the country.

   Iran's  opposition  accuses conservative President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
   of  rigging a presidential election last June to give himself a second
   term. The opposition claims Mousavi was the rightful winner.

   Mousavi's  website  also  quotes  him  as criticizing the government's
   post-election  crackdown  on independent media. He urged supporters of
   his  Green Movement to keep raising awareness about their campaign for
   basic rights through social networking tools on the Internet.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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