Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in his Friday prayers address on the crisis in the country, blamed a world media controlled by "dirty Zionists" and "most evil" British for fomenting divisions, and called upon all Iranians to accept the election results, saying that a gap of 11 million votes is infallible. But his words also revealed a clear fault line within Iran's political elite. In his lengthy discourse on former president Hashemi Rafsanjani, Khamenei made insubstantial charges of corruption, and implicated the entire Rafsanjani family as "problematic."

In a scene recalling the 1979 Revolution, tens of thousands of black-clad mourners made their way silently through the streets of Tehran June 18, commemorating the lives of those slain in six straight days of protests since the announcement of President Ahmedinajad's election victory. At Imam Khomeini square, the huge plaza named for the founder of the revolution, where they were joined by defeated opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi, the crowd broke into chants of "Death to the dictator!" and "Where are our votes?" Mousavi, addressing the crowd, repeated his call for new elections. (London Times, June 18)

International rights organizations say hundreds of activists and opposition figures have been detained in Iran in response to protests over the country's disputed elections. Hadi Ghaemi, director of the New York-based International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, said he had spoken with family members and colleagues of people who have been arrested or disappeared—saying there have been at least 200 such cases across the country.

Venezuela's Hugo Chávez is one of the few world leaders to stand by Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, even as hundreds of thousands take to the streets of Iran's cities to protest his re-election claim. A Venezuelan foreign ministry statement, "in the name of the people," hailed the "extraordinary democratic development" that resulted in Ahmadinejad's victory.

Thousands of Iranians took to the streets of Tehran June 16 in rival demonstrations over the country's disputed presidential election, pushing the crisis into its fourth day despite a government offer to recount a limited number of ballots. With a harsh media crackdown in place, word has been slow to get out of protests outside Tehran—but at least two are reported dead in Tabriz, capital of Azerbaijan province.

As Iran's embattled President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Russia June 16, Iranian state radio reported that seven people were killed in clashes overnight, escalating tensions after days of unprecedented demonstrations that have forced a formal review of elections results. The reports said the deaths came after "thugs" attacked a military post. (NYT, BBC News, June 17) Our correspondent in Tehran says: "At the end of non-violent rally which is called illegal by officials (in spite of lots of attempts to get permission from competent authorities), Basij started to shoot at people from northwestern corner of Azadi square."

At least one person was killed and several wounded in Tehran's Azadi Square when armed men opened fire on a rally by tens of thousands protesting Iran's election results June 15. The rally was held in defiance of a ban imposed by the Interior Ministry. The shooting occurred in front of a local base of the Basij, Iran's volunteer paramilitary force, which had been set ablaze. Police fired tear gas as protesters set several police motorbikes on fire. (AlJazeera, June 15)

Iran is bracing for a third day of protests after defeated candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi called for the election results to be annulled. On June 14, tens of thousands rallied in Tehran to celebrate President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's victory—as riot police and anti-Ahmadinejad protesters again clashed in several parts of the city. Police used baton and motorbike charges as well as tear gas. Streets were littered with broken glass and fires set by protesters, while more riot police patrolled Mousavi strongholds. Mousavi supporters cried "death to the dictator" into the evening. Scores have been reported arrested. "I urge you, Iranian nation, to continue your nationwide protests in a peaceful and legal way," Mousavi told his supporters, while calling on Iran's Guardian Council to annul the election. (BBC, June 15)