New Protests In Iran Amid Rafsanjani’s Election Condemnation

Former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani openly questioned the validity of the elections today and this is the result…

More from the Wash Post:

Rafsanjani, who backed Mousavi’s election campaign, said many Iranians had doubts about official results that showed hardline President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad had won by a wide margin.

The pragmatic cleric, who heads the Council of Experts — a powerful body that can in theory dismiss the supreme leader — attacked the way authorities had handled the poll and its aftermath.

“When people are not in the scene and their votes are not there, that government is not Islamic,” he said, referring to opposition charges of vote-rigging. “Today is a bitter day.”

Rafsanjani said it was vital to restore voters’ faith in the system. “That trust cannot be brought back in a day or a night … We all have been harmed. Today more than ever we need unity.”

He criticized the Guardian Council, a clerical body which vets candidates and considers election complaints, for failing to do its job even though it was given five extra days to make its assessment. The council has denied any irregularities.

You can also find more video here and here

Here’s the question: Will Iran’s nationwide protests begin anew?