Thank you, President, and thank you Assistant Secretary-General Pobee, Masih Alinejad, and Ahmad Batebi for your briefings. We welcome this timely meeting.
The United Kingdom is appalled by the reports that potentially thousands of people in Iran have been killed and many more arrested in the most brutal repression of public protests in decades.
Despite the regime’s near-total internet shutdown, videos emerging from Iran indicate that these reports may underestimate the full scale of the horror currently underway.
The regime will claim that these protests were instigated by “foreign backed” forces. But lies and propaganda cannot justify its actions. This behaviour is not an aberration for this regime. It is the latest manifestation of the repression and brutality we have witnessed time and time again.
Let me be clear. We condemn the regime’s actions in the strongest possible terms.
We pay tribute to the courage of the Iranian people – particularly Iranian women. Once again, they are bravely voicing their aspirations to live in freedom and dignity in the face of repression and violence.
As my Prime Minister stated, alongside his French and German counterparts, we urge Iran to respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of its people, including the right to protest without fear of violence or repression.
Iranian authorities must protect their people – not brutalise them.
Iran must urgently change course. We have delivered this message directly to Foreign Minister Araghchi. As the G7 has made clear, we will act alongside our partners to impose additional restrictive measures if it does not.
As my Foreign Secretary has said, the world is watching. The United Kingdom will continue to confront the regime’s misinformation, call out its repression, and support regional peace and security.
