Iranian opposition leaders say 69 people were killed in protests after a disputed election in June and parliament has promised to investigate, pro-reform newspapers said today.
The government set the official toll at 26.
Many conservatives have joined an outcry led by reformist opponents of re-elected hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over the treatment of more than 4,000 people officials say were detained throughout Iran during demonstrations after the vote.
The opposition says the poll was rigged, a charge denied by Iran's authorities, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has accused Western powers of inciting the unrest.
"The names of 69 people who were killed in post-election unrest ... were submitted to parliament for investigation. The report also included the names of about 220 detainees," Alireza Hosseini Beheshti, an ally of moderate presidential candidate Mirhossein Mousavi, was quoted by the Sarmayehdaily as saying.
Judiciary spokesman Alireza Jamshidi told a news conference more than 4,000 protesters had been detained after the election, of whom 3,700 had been released within a week of their arrest.
Among those still in prison are senior pro-reform politicians, journalists, activists and lawyers.
Parliament speaker Ali Larijani said after a meeting yesterday with a committee set up by opposition leaders to pursue the issue that the assembly would carefully review cases of detainees and those killed, Etemad-e Mellinewspaper said.
Reuters