European lawmakers have accused Iran of blocking a planned visit to Iran due later this week. Tehran says the MEPs themselves have postponed the trip.

The MEPs were due to meet human rights activists as swell as Iranian parliamentarians. The head of the delegation, German Green MEP Barbara Lochbihler, says the move is proof of Iran's refusal to discuss the country's political crisis. The news comes as Iran's opposition faces a government crackdown amid ongoing protests over the disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last year. Iranian security forces have arrested scores of opposition figures and dissidents since fierce clashes in Tehran in late December left at least eight people killed.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (Photo: ANP/EPA)