Iran reform rally defies crackdown
More than 100,000 opponents of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have defied an Iranian Interior Ministry ban and streamed into central Tehran to cheer their pro-reform leader.
Mir Hossein Mousavi was making his first public appearance since the elections he claims was marred by fraud.
Security forces watched quietly, with shields and batons at their sides.
The outpouring for Mr Mousavi followed a decision by Iran's most powerful figure for an investigation into the vote-rigging allegations.
Mr Mousavi addressed the crowd on the edge of Tehran's Azadi, or Freedom, Square where President Ahmadinejad made his first post-election speech.
The crowd, which was more than five miles long, roared back: "Long live Mousavi!"
"This is not election. This is selection," read one English-language placard at the demonstration. Other marchers held signs proclaiming "We want our vote!" and raising their fingers in a V-for-victory salute.
"We want our president, not the one who was forced on us," said 28-year-old Sara, who gave only her first name because of fears of reprisals from authorities.
Hours earlier, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei directed one of Iran's most influential bodies, the Guardian Council, to examine the claims.
But the move by Ayatollah Khamenei - who had earlier welcomed the election result - had no guarantee it would satisfy those challenging President Ahmadinejad's re-election or quell days of rioting after Friday's election that left parts of Tehran scarred by flames and shattered store fronts.
