Iran MPs rage against opposition after deadly demo

TEHRAN: Furious Iranian lawmakers on Tuesday demanded the hanging of opposition leaders who had called anti-government protests which left two people dead, saying they had been "misled"  by Iran's arch-foes.

MPs singled out Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, who had called for protests in Tehran on Monday in support of Arab uprisings that quickly turned into anti-government demonstrations and ended in clashes with police in which several people were hurt, including nine security force members.

Mohammad Khatami, former reformist president, also came under fire from the nation's conservatives following his open backing of the opposition movement since disputed June 2009 presidential elections.

"Mousavi and Karroubi should be executed! Death to Mousavi, Karroubi and Khatami!" the lawmakers shouted in the house, state news agency IRNA reported.

They said that the United States, Britain and Israel had orchestrated Monday's protests through the opposition leaders, who, according to parliament speaker Ali Larijani were being "misled" by Iran's arch-foes.

"The parliament condemns the Zionists, American, anti-revolutionary and anti-national action of the misled seditionists," a visibly angry Larijani told the parliament.

He also urged that a committee be formed to probe and "confront" the opposition movement.

Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami, a hardline cleric who often leads Friday prayers in Tehran, applauded the MPs and, accused the two opposition leaders of being "mohareb," or enemies of God, adding they deserved the harshest of punishments.

Despite a strict ban on the rally, heavy security force deployment and the placing of Mousavi and Karroubi under de facto house arrest, thousands of opposition supporters took to streets of the capital on Monday.

The demonstrations sparked violent clashes in which riot police fired tear gas and paintballs at demonstrators, witnesses and websites said.

Kazem Jalali, member of the parliamentary commission of national security and foreign policy, told the ISNA news agency two people were killed in the clashes.

"In today's session that the commission held with the interior minister (Mostafa Mohammad Najjar), he told us that a number of popular and revolutionary forces were injured by gunshot and two persons were martyred," Jalali said.

Ahmad Reza Radan, deputy police chief of Iran, had earlier said that one person was killed and that he had been shot dead by members of an outlawed group.

Radan also reported "some" people wounded, including nine security force members.

The anti-government demonstrations were the first in Tehran since February 11 2010.

Mousavi and Karroubi allege Ahmadinejad's re-election in June 2009 was massively rigged and in the months after the results were announced called for protests which drew tens of thousands onto the streets shaking the pillars of the Islamic republic and angering its leaders.

Britain, the United States, France and the European Union appealed to the Iranian authorities to show restraint, recalling Iran's earlier support for the uprising in Egypt.