Iranian MP claims sexual abuse of protesters has been proved

guardian.co.uk

Comments by member of investigative team are first official acknowledgement prisoners were violated. An Iranian MP said today there is proof that some reformists were sexually abused in prison after the disputed presidential election in June.

"Raping of some detainees through baton and soda bottle has been proved to us," the unnamed member of the investigative committee was quoted as saying. His comments are the first official acknowledgment that prisoners were violated. Until now, Iran's leaders had dismissed such opposition claims as mischief-making. One of the defeated reformist presidential candidates, Mehdi Karroubi, has alleged that some of those arrested after mass demonstrations were raped.

Yesterday Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rebuked opposition leaders for calling attention to alleged abuses of detainees. Without directly naming anyone, Khamenei criticised them for highlighting claims of mistreatment in Kahrizak prison, one of the sites where protesters have been held. "Some ignore defacing of the system while highlighting the issue of Kahrizak," he was quoted as saying by the state Islamic Republic News Agency. "This way of thinking is an open unfairness." (Read more...)