Iran's Supreme Leader rules out possibility of vote tampering

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Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called for calm and patience in the country following street rallies in protest over results from the recent presidential election.

In a speech delivered at prayers in Tehran University on Friday, he ruled out any possibility of vote tampering.

This is the Supreme leader's first public appearance after almost a week of street protests by pro-opposition supporters.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said there should be no question about the election result, calling it a clear victory for President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad.

He also denied there had been any vote manipulation, as was claimed by supporters of the opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's Supreme Leader, said, "If the difference was 100-thousand or 500-thousand or one-million, well, one may say fraud could have happened. But how can one rig 11-million votes?"

The Supreme Leader also said that all four candidates in the presidential election belong to Iran's Islamic establishment.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, delivers his sermon in front of a picture of the late spiritual leader Ayatollah Khomeini, during the Friday prayers, at the Tehran University campus, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, June 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Hayat News Agency, Meisam Hosseini)