Iran upholds election result, says matter closed

TEHERAN: A senior hardline Iranian cleric yesterday demanded an end to protests over the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as president after Iran's top legislative body slammed shut the last door for a legal challenge.

The Guardian Council on Monday dismissed complaints of irregularities in the June 12 vote raised by two defeated candidates, Mirhossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi.

A statement on Mousavi's website yesterday did not comment directly on the 12-man body's ruling, but referred to the former prime minister's letter to the Guardian Council on Saturday in which he repeated his demand for the election to be annulled.