Human rights groups are urging UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to visit Iran or send a special envoy to investigate the crackdown on protests against last month’s disputed elections.

Human Rights Watch Middle East Director Sarah Leah Whitson: “The Secretary-General should insist on making a trip to Iran to insist that there be investigations and prosecutions of violence by the Basij military forces. There should continue to be a review of Iran’s record at the United Nations. Diplomats from capitals, east and west, who are still in — have relations and should have relations with Iran, should raise protests, both privately and publicly, about the conduct of Iran’s government.”

Meanwhile, the Iranian American journalist Roxana Saberi called on Iran to release all political prisoners, now estimated to surpass 200.

Roxana Saberi: “They are detained without due process of law, and the whereabouts of most of them are unknown. They have little or no contact with the outside world. They are likely under severe psychological and, in some cases, physical pressures. Many may be forced to make false confessions, and they have no access to lawyers. This is very similar to the treatment that I received.”