Iran's Guardian Council on Saturday evening denied an earlier report that it had allowed female citizens to participate in the presidential election on June 17, the official IRNA news agency reported.

"No change has been made in the stance of the Guardian Council about the meaning of 'rejal', and the body still believes that'rejal' means men," Guardian Council spokesman Gholamhossein Elhamwas quoted as saying.

Earlier in the day, state television reported that Elham had announced women who were qualified in terms of some conditions could also run for presidency.

Iran's constitution says president candidates must be religiousand political "rejal", a loanword from Arabic which can be interpreted as both "man" and "personalities".

For the past 25 years, the hardline Guardian Council, Iran's top legislative arbitration body, has rejected women from running for president according to the "male" interpretation.

In recent years, many political activists urged the Guardian Council to adopt a neutral interpretation of the word "rejal" and allow female citizens to participate in the presidential race.

Source: Xinhua