Iran minister attacks public floggings

The pro-reform interior minister in Iran has condemned the increasing flogging of young people in public for drinking alcohol.

Abdolvahed Musavi Lari - who is a close ally of President Mohammad Khatami - complained that as the main official responsible for security in the country, he was not kept informed about such decisions.

In the latest incident, 25 men were publicly flogged in the capital, Tehran, for consuming and selling alcohol, which is forbidden under Islamic law.

Mr Musavi Lari said that such public punishments had serious political and social consequences for the country.

A BBC Iran affairs analyst in London says that reformists fear that the hardline conservative judiciary is ordering such punishments in an attempt to undermine President Khatami's credibility.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service