A hardline Iranian cleric urged the judiciary on Friday to arrest the leaders of post-election unrest, in what appeared to be a reference to defeated moderate presidential candidates Mirhossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi, Reuters reported.
Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, who heads the powerful Guardian Council, did not name either man, but other hardliners have repeatedly accused them of fomenting post-election street protests in which at least 26 people were killed.
"(Post-vote) riots are our main issue today ... Some people were arrested and some were not. Why weren't the leaders behind the riots arrested? ... Their arrest should be the first thing that the judiciary must do," Jannati told Friday prayer worshippers. The sermon was broadcast live on state radio.
The opposition says the June 12 poll was rigged to secure the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- a charge denied by Iran's authorities, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who endorsed the president shortly after the vote.
The losing candidates say 69 people were killed in unrest that erupted after the vote, and that some of those detained after the election were abused in prison.
Iran has begun three mass trials of those arrested after the vote, aimed at uprooting the opposition and putting an end to protests.