Riot police clash with Mousavi supporters in Iran

By Fredrik Dahl

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian riot police on motorcycles beat supporters of presidential challenger Mirhossein Mousavi who were protesting on Saturday against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's disputed election win.

A Reuters reporter said she and others were beaten by police with batons as police chased and arrested demonstrators staging a sit-in at Tehran's Vanak Square, one of the capital's busiest intersections.

At least three people were injured in the clash, which broke out after the Interior Ministry announced the hardline incumbent's resounding victory in Friday's vote.

Mousavi, a moderate, protested against what he called violations and vote-rigging during the election. Interior Ministry officials rejected the allegations.

He said in a separate statement that members of his election headquarters had been beaten "with batons, wooden sticks and electrical rods."

Tehran's deputy police chief, Mohsen Khancharli, said the force would "strongly confront" any gathering or rally held without permission. He said people protesting against the election outcome had damaged cars.

"Police are not confronting people but only those who are disturbing public order or who make damage to public places," he told the official IRNA news agency.

Up to 2,000 Mousavi supporters took part in the sit-in in the middle of the road, chanting: "Mousavi take back our vote! What happened to our vote?".