Iran’s Karroubi issues first statement following end of house arrest

Mahdi Karroubi said he considers himself bound to defend the rights of all citizens regardless of their views and beliefs.

Karroubi added that he will not remain silent and will keep defending the legal and legitimate rights of people.

He said he believes that Iran belongs to all Iranians.

Karroubi also said he regards himself as God’s servant, the son of Iran, a soldier of the Iranian people and indebted to the martyrs of the Islamic Revolution and the imposed Iraqi war.

Elsewhere, Karroubi noted that he preferred to be released from house arrest along with Mir Hossein Mousavi and his wife Zahra Rahnavard. The three were placed under house arrest in early 2010 following violent protests against the presidential election.

This came after they instigated protests on the streets after Karroubi and Mousavi were defeated in the presidential election by their rival Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2009.

The unrest, which Iranian officials describe as sedition, involved street riots during which several people were killed.

Iran’s Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has emphasized that he remains vigilant regarding the sedition of 2009, stating that the criterion for judgment is whether individuals supported the leaders of the sedition, exploited it, or have yet to disavow it.
Elsewhere he asserted that had this sedition not occurred, the country’s progress would undoubtedly have been much stronger. The events of 2009 emboldened the enemies and boosted the morale of those who have formed a front against the Islamic system.