Aadel Collection
Iran panel insists Karroubi claims are ‘baseless’
Press TV lttp://www.presstv.ir/pop/Print/?id=106 150 E 1L1 JUTV Iran panel insists Karroubi claims are ‘baseless' Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:49:23 GMT Iran's prosecutor general, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, says claims by former presidential candidate and leading opposition figure Mehdi Karroubi on jail rape of post-vote detainees are baseless. Ejei made the remarks in a televised interview on Sunday, after a special judiciary panel, which he is a member of, refuted allegations made by Karroubi that post-vote detainees had been sexually assaulted in Iranian jails. Ejei, the former Iranian intelligence minister, pointed to four CDs presented by Karroubi to the panel and said, “Studies on a CD belonging to one of the detainees revealed that it has been deliberately designed.” “It was obvious that someone has prepared the CD to present as the most important proof to Karroubi's claims,” he said. “It is probable that Karroubi had no information about the CD at that time.” “Studies on the remaining CDs showed they did not include any case of sexual assault. So, we decided to talk to the owner of the CD and those who have made them. But later Karroubi's office or website announced that the person had been missing,” added Iran's prosecutor general. He said the person has been guided by one of Karroubi's men who has made the CDs. “The detainee has not been arrested by state organizations. This proves that the CDs were fabricated.” Karroubi has previously said that members of Etemad-e-MelIi (National Trust) Party have quoted an individual as saying that he has been arrested in a street in Tehran, beaten up and consequently raped. “I called the person and heard his remarks. One of the Etemad-e-MeIIi members recorded his words on a CD,” the cleric said. “This person said he was alone in the street when three men confronted him and took him away in their car.” Mohseni-Ejei cited another case claimed to be rape, saying, “Karroubi provided no document about Taraneh Mousavi; a person with characteristics mentioned by Karroubi that did not exist.” “Karroubi has allegedly said that Mousavi, who suffered deep wounds, had been hospitalized overnight, but the day later, she was taken away from the hospital and her corpse was consequently found outside the city,” he added. “Actually, we found no one with such characteristics,” he stressed. “Karroubi, himself, knows that his claims are not true, but he is not going to confess what he is aware of,” the former intelligence minister concluded. 1 of 2 10/26/2009 2:33 PM
Press TV http://www.presstv.ir/pop/Printl'?id= 106150 The three-member panel has been set up upon an order by Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani, the country's chief judge, to thoroughly investigate all post-vote cases mentioned by Karroubi. Ejei, deputy Judiciary Chief Ebrahim Raeesi and Judiciary adviser Ali Khalafi were named on Saturday as members of the panel. Iran's prosecutor general also added that no judicial study has been done. “The three-member judiciary panel has carried out no judiciary work on Karroubi's claims. It has just probed into the claims and submitted the results to the Judiciary chief,” said Ejei. SF/S C/DT/MD 2 of 2 10/26/2009 2:33 PM