Tehran is flooded by a sea of protesters

HUNDREDS of thousands of protesters again filled the streets of Tehran yesterday, joining opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, wearing black and carrying candles to mourn demonstrators killed in clashes over Iran's disputed election.

The massive protest defied orders from Iran's supreme leader, despite a government attempt to placate Mr Mousavi and his supporters by inviting the reformist and two other candidates who ran against hard-line president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to a meeting with the country's main electoral authority.

Many in the huge crowd carried black candles and lit them as night fell. Others wore green wristbands and carried flowers in mourning as they filed into Imam Khomenei Square, a large plaza in the heart of the capital named for the founder of the Islamic Revolution, witnesses said.

Press TV, an English-language version of Iranian state television, estimated the crowd at hundreds of thousands and said the people listened to a brief address from Mr Mousavi, who called for calm and restraint.

The protesters had marched silently until they arrived at the square, where some chanted "Death to the dictator!" a witness said. Press TV showed protesters making V-for-victory signs and holding pictures of Mr Mousavi.

Others held photographs of those killed, apparently taken after they died, some showing bloodied faces. "Our martyred brothers, we will take back your votes," one placard read. "Why did you kill our brothers?" said another.

On Monday, hundreds of thousands turned out in a huge procession that recalled the scale of protests during the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Seven demonstrators were shot and killed that day by pro-regime militia in the first confirmed deaths during the unrest.

Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has urged people to pursue their allegations of election fraud within the cleric-led system. Mr Mousavi and his followers have rejected compromise and pressed their demands for a new vote, flouting the will of a man who has virtually limitless powers under Iran's constitution.

The main electoral authority invited Mr Mousavi and two other candidates who opposed Mr Ahmadinejad to a meeting. Iran's al-Alam Arabic television channel said the three candidates would meet the Guardian Council tomorrow.

The unelected body of 12 clerics and Islamic law experts close to Mr Khamenei has said it is prepared to conduct a limited recount of ballots at sites where candidates claim irregularities.

Mr Mousavi, who claims he won the election, says the Guardian Council supports Mr Ahmadinejad. He has demanded an independent investigation as well as a new poll.

The council's spokesman, Abbasali Khadkhodaei, said yesterday that it received 646 complaints from the candidates who ran against Mr Ahmadinejad in the 12 June election. Mr Ahmadinejad was declared winner with nearly 63 per cent of the vote against 34 per cent for his closest rival, Mousavi.

Mr Ahmadinejad defended the legitimacy of the vote, telling a cabinet meeting yesterday that it had "posed a great challenge to the West's democracy," Mehr news agency reported.

"The ideals of the Islamic Revolution were the winners of the election," Mr Ahmadinejad said, adding that 25 million of 40 million voters had approved the way he was running the country.

The regime has blocked communication channels, such as websites and mobile phone networks, to make it more difficult for Mr Mousavi's supporters to organise protests.

The mobile phone network in Tehran appeared to go down at the start of yesterday's demonstration, as it has intermittently since shortly after the election results were announced. Text messaging has been blocked almost constantly since Friday.

There have been widespread accusations of night-time attacks on Mousavi supporters by pro-government militiamen, and protesters attacked a militia building after one rally, but both sides have been restrained, with uniformed police and other security forces standing by as protesters march calmly through the streets.

Monday's massive gathering was followed by three days of marches along main Tehran avenues, presenting one of the gravest threats to Iran's complex blend of democracy and religious authority since the system emerged out of the Islamic revolution that brought down Western-backed Shah.

The ruling clerics still command deep public support and are defended by Iran's most powerful military force – the Revolutionary Guard – as well as a vast network of militias.

But Mr Mousavi's movement has forced Mr Khamenei into the centre of the escalating crisis, questioning his role as the final authority on all critical issues.

Press TV said Mr Khamenei would lead the capital's main weekly prayers ceremony at Tehran University today.

There was no immediate word on whether Mr Ahmadinejad would attend, but he usually goes to the service whenever Mr Khamenei leads it, once or twice a year under normal circumstances.

Clerical body has the power to dismiss Iran's leader

THE wild card for Mir Hossein Mousavi's movement is former president Hashemi Rafsanjani, who heads the Assembly of Experts – a cleric-run body that is empowered to choose or dismiss Iran's supreme leader.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's successor, and the assembly has never used its power to remove Iran's highest authority.

Mr Rafsanjani was a fierce critic of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad during the election, but has not publicly backed Mr Mousavi. It is not known whether Mr Mousavi has courted his support or if they have held talks. But Iranian TV has shown pictures of Faezeh Hashemi, Mr Rafsanjani's daughter, speaking to hundreds of Mr Mousavi's supporters, carrying pictures of Ayatollah Khomeini. Hard-line students rallied outside the Tehran prosecutor's office yesterday, accusing Ms Hashemi and her brother Mahdi of treason, state radio reported.

For the moment, protesters have focused on the results of the balloting rather than challenging the Islamic system of government. But a shift in anger toward Iran's non-elected theocracy would raise the stakes. Instead of a clash over the poll results, it would become a showdown over the foundation of Iran's system of rule – the almost unlimited authority of the clerics at the top.

The Iranian government has also directly accused the United States of meddling in the deepening crisis.