Iranian Presidential Elections

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is locked in a neck-and-neck race against reformist Mir Hossein Mousavi. Both have launched intense political attacks against each other and have turned the presidential election into a display of Iran's deep political divides.

The ayatollah spoke for nearly two hours and insisted there was no fraud in Iran's disputed presidential elections and said that the state would not cheat. "The people have made their choice," he said.

He also gave President Ahmadinejad his full support. "It's natural to have differences of opinion," he said. "But I believe the president's [views] are closer to what they should be."

Speaking after six days of massive protests against the controversial re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Khamenei said, "Today the Iranian nation needs calm."

Khamenei blamed 'Iran's enemies" in the West, singling out the United States, Great Britain and Israel for undermining the elections. The "Zionist-owned Western media," he said, are to blame too.