Iran's opposition leader criticizes ruling clerics

Iran's opposition leader condemned the country's hardline ruling clerics for abuses against anti-government detainees, while insisting that the protest movement remains committed to a nonviolent path.

Mir Hossein Mousavi has often spoken out against the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, but has recently stepped up his criticism of Iran's clerical leaders.

In remarks posted late Thursday on his website kaleme.com, Mousavi was quoted as telling a gathering of families of detained political activists that their "children, brothers, sisters and husbands are innocent."

"What did they do? The asked for the most basic rights of the nation. But they were arrested ... tortured," he said. "Even their families are attacked, disrespected and assaulted."

Mousavi stressed that peaceful, nonviolent resistence is the only path to victory, saying that violence will only allow the ruling system to justify its crackdown against the opposition.

"We neither have nor want weapons ... we took to the streets to demand 'where is my vote?' We challenged (the ruling system) with logic," Mousavi said. "Peaceful resistance and awakening the people is our main asset to bring change."

Earlier this week, Iran granted the mothers of three Americans arrested in July along Iran's border with Iraq visas to visit their children, who are being held in a Tehran prison. While welcoming that decision, Mousavi accused the Iranian government of double standards, and questioned why Iranian mothers have not been afforded the same right.

"Exposing this issue alone will reveal where problems lie," he said.

Mousavi has hardened his stance against the ruling system in recent weeks, saying a dictatorial "cult" and a corrupt power structure was ruling Iran in the name of Islam.

Iran's opposition alleges President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won the June vote through fraud and that Mousavi was the rightful winner. A massive wave of protests following the elections prompted a bloody government crackdown, during which more than 80 demonstrators were killed and hundreds of rights activists, journalists and pro-reform politicians were arrested.

The government, which puts the number of confirmed deaths at 30, has accused opposition leaders of being "stooges of the West" and of seeking to topple the ruling system through street protests.

Mousavi insisted that shutting down newspapers and blocking websites showed the ruling system was afraid the Iranian people were waking up.

Iran's hardline government has closed down dozens of pro-reform papers, including Mousavi's Kalame Sabz, or Green Word, and blocked hundreds of reformist Web sites as part of its efforts to clamp down on opposition activities.