Iranian authorities indicated Friday they planned to put some members of the British Embassy staff in Tehran on trial, officials said.

Nine staff members were seized after the unrest sparked by Iran's disputed presidential elections on June 12. Some were released but the number still detained was unclear.

Iran accused the Embassy staffers of fomenting and orchestrating protests, The New York Times said. Pro-democracy Iranians, however, said they were caused by a widespread crackdown by government security forces.

Meanwhile, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, the head of the influential Guardian Council and an ally of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was quoted in news reports as saying the employees would be tried after confessing.