Tens of thousands of black-clad, candle-bearing protesters massed quietly in central Tehran on Thursday for another day of protest over last week’s disputed presidential election, even as the Iranian Government made its first move toward some form of dialogue to defuse the outrage.

The move came in the form of an invitation from the country’s Guardian Council to the three major challengers to meet to discuss their grievances.

The exact motives, timing and conditions of the proposed meeting, reported by state media, remained unclear. The offer, from a legal panel largely controlled by Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was widely seen as a Government effort to buy time in the hopes of dampening the momentum of protests.

The Government also seemed to be building a case that challenges to the election represented a threat to national security, with the Intelligence Ministry describing an election-day bomb plot linked to foreign enemies, Reuters reported.

Posts on Twitter called for the gathering in Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Square at 4 pm. “All wear BLACK — we pray together,” a Twitter post said on Thursday. As that hour approached, people streamed toward the square. Main Opposition leader Mir Hussein Moussavi appeared with his wife, standing on top of their car to wave to protesters. The police kept to the sidelines, there were no immediate reports of clashes.

According to the BBC Moussavi, wearing a black shirt and suit, addressed the crowd with a loudspeaker sources told news agencies.

Moussavi had called on his followers to mourn those protesters killed in clashes with paramilitary forces over the past several days, and protesters wore black and carried black candles. Many held their hands, their fingers making a V for victory. Meanwhile, some protesters expressed growing fears that the Government’s tolerance of the persistent protests would expire soon.

... contd.