Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei formally endorsed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as president on Monday against the backdrop of opposition leaders' outcry for investigating the disputed presidential elections in June, the English-language Press TV reported.

"Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has just endorsed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iran's next president," Press TV said.

"The official ceremony was held in the presence of the heads of the three Executive, Legislative and Judiciary branches of the Islamic establishment and a number of political and military figures and foreign ambassadors in Tehran," the report said.

(Xinhua News Agency August 3, 2009)