( CNN ) -- Six days after official election results awarded him victory in Iran 's presidential elections and four days after he compared the putative losers to fans of a losing soccer team , unleashing a wave of fury in his country , Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in a broadcast aired Thursday his remarks had been taken out of context . President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad complained Thursday that earlier comments had been taken out of context . `` I was addressing those who started riots and set up fires and attacked people , '' he told the state-run news agency IRINN in an interview . `` I said these [ people ] are nothing , they are not even part of the nation of Iran . They are alien in relation to Iran . '' Ahmadinejad said that the official results , which gave him an overwhelming margin of victory that many Iranians are challenging as rigged , mean that `` everybody is victorious ... We are a big family , and we have to put our hands together . '' In Sunday 's remarks to a rally at Vali-e Asr Square in Tehran , he said , `` The Iranian nation is united . In a football match , there are 50,000 to 70,000 spectators . Those whose team has lost are angry and will do anything to vent their anger . Forty million people participated in the elections in Iran . They themselves were the players , and they determined [ the outcome ] . `` Now four or five dirt or dust creeping from the corners may do something . But you must know that the pure river that is the Iranian nation will not allow them to put themselves on display . '' His reference to unhappy Iranians as `` dirt '' or `` dust '' was seen by many as particularly galling , and he offered a qualified apology on Thursday . `` I am sorry about the degree of accuracy of the news that some publicize , '' he said . `` The very clear statement of the president is being distorted . '' He said that he had noted that all 40 million Iranians had emerged as victorious in the elections , not just those who may have voted for him . And he attempted to include supporters of Mir Hossein Moussavi , the opposition leader who reportedly lost , in his embrace . `` These all are victors of the election forum ; they are all dear , '' he said . `` We are all brothers . And I even said the road is open . Everyone should come . And nobody has the right to ask anybody else whom did you vote for . This means this is how much the government cares for the rights of the people . '' Watch report on online sites that support Ahmadinejad » . He added , `` I am sorry that some people base their movements and political activities on these rumors that are basically untrue , and I hope this will be corrected . '' Key religious conservatives have publicly complained of Ahmadinejad 's treatment of the protesters in rallies demanding a new vote . Watch the latest from the streets of Tehran » . One of the critics was Habibolah Asgharoladi , a senior member of a key conservative voting bloc allied with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , which represents Tehran 's influential bazaar merchant class . Asgharoladi has accused Ahmadinejad of treating the pro-Moussavi demonstrators improperly and urged him to treat them with more respect . These developments marked an extraordinary rebuke to Ahmadinejad and a rare public airing of the existing rift among ruling conservatives . Watch report on conservatives ' reaction » . Other segments of Iranian society are planning to hold rallies , including the Association of Combatant Clerics . The group of influential clerics has requested permission to demonstrate on the streets of Tehran on Saturday , Iran 's government-funded Press TV reported . Khamenei has asked the authority , the Guardian Council , to recount some of the votes . But Moussavi and his supporters are demanding fresh elections .
Ahmadinejad 's comparison of election losers to soccer fans unleashed wave of fury . `` I was addressing those who started riots and set up fires , '' he says in broadcast . President of Iran attempts to embrace opponents : `` These all are victors '' Key conservatives have complained of Ahmadinejad 's treatment of protesters .