Ahmad Montazeri, the son of the late dissident cleric Ayatollah Montazeri, has written to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei to ask that he release the two detained opposition leaders, MirHosein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, so they can attend the inauguration of president-elect Hassan Rohani.
In a letter published on his website, Ahmad Montazeri writes that creating national unity is a top concern due to the current political and economic situation of the country.
He goes on with his address to Ayatollah Khamenei, saying: “Your order for the release of Mr. Karroubi, Mr. Mousavi, Mrs. Rahnavard and other political prisoners, allowing them to attend the presidential inauguration, could be the simplest way to achieve this end.”
Hassan Rohani, the candidate backed by reformists, won the June election with over half of total votes. His inauguration ceremony will take place in early August.
Karroubi, Mousavi and Rahnavard have been under house arrest since February of 2011.
Ahmad Montazeri also calls for the attendance of representatives from different political groups as well as the families of victims of the 2009 protests and families of the victims at Kahrizak Prison, who were tortured and killed.
The elections protests of 2009 in support of the reformist candidates were met with widespread arrests and violence. Many protesters were killed on the streets, thousand were arrested and many are still serving harsh sentences.
Detainees at Kahrizak Prison were tortured and at least three of them died while in custody.
The new president-elect, who won on a platform of moderation, has been called on by progressive forces to make every effort to bring about the release of the opposition leaders and other political prisoners.
