Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 26
By Emil Ilgar - Trend:
Iranian reformist ex-president Mohammad Khatami has cast votes at the parliament and Assembly of Experts elections in Tehran.
Iranian media remain banned from covering statements and pictures of former reformist president, but an Instagram account related to Khatami has published a photo, showing him voting in the Jamaran mosque.
Khatami also invited people to participate in the elections via social media.
During this round of elections, 4,844 candidates are competing, while about 55 million Iranians are eligible to vote. Each candidate should get at least 25 percent of votes in his constituency, otherwise the second round of elections is held a month after the results of first round.
The Iranian Judiciary banned the country's media from covering news or publishing pictures of the former president, Mohammad Khatami.
In 2009, after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was elected the president of Iran for the second term, the opposition leaders protested the decision, which later resulted in massive protests across Iran, in particular in Tehran.
The reformists' leaders Mehdi Karroubi and Mir Hossein Mousavi have been under house arrest since 2011 due to protests against the disputed presidential elections of 2009 and Khatami has been banned to be covered by media.