A website released the identities of post-election victims

Cable News Network (CNN)

An Iranian reformist Web site on Friday released the identities of 72 people it says were killed by government forces in the aftermath of Iran's disputed presidential elections. The list posted on Norooz News' Web site is more than double government estimates, which put the death toll of protesters between 25 and 30. Norooz gives the names, ages and details surrounding most of the victims' deaths, which range from being shot by members of the Basij militia to being beaten to death in Tehran's Evin prison.

Iranian government officials did not immediately respond to the claims by Norooz and could not be immediately reached for comment during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. Experts said that even though the opposition has always claimed that the post-election death toll is higher that the government figures, releasing the identities takes another swipe at the credibility of the current hard-line regime and forces its leaders to respond to allegations of wrongdoing.

"The opposition is aiming directly at the government," said Ali Alfoneh, a research fellow at the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute who has researched the relationship between Iranian civilians and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard. Alfoneh noted that releasing such a specific list puts pressure on Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei who, referring to reports of detainee rape and torture, has said, "The system has no intention to forgive or be courteous to any wrongdoers." (Read more...)