Two days after the announcement of the 2021 presidential elections in Iran, the French Foreign Ministry, without congratulating Raisi on winning the elections, issued a brief statement, stressing Paris’ “concerns” over the human rights situation in Iran.

The French foreign policy apparatus, in the statement released after Raisi’s first press briefing following his victory, reaffirmed France’s desire for a return to full implementation of the Vienna nuclear agreement.

“We recall the concerns we have regularly expressed regarding the human rights situation in Iran.” the French Foreign Ministry statement said, expressing concern over the human rights situation in Iran.

The statement also referred to a part of Raisi’s remarks on human rights. Ebrahim Raisi during his first press briefing said he has always defended human rights.

The statement referred to Ebrahim Raisi’s remarks about “defending human rights” and highlighted Iranian-French and dozens of other dual-national prisoners in Iranian detention centers.

Benjamin Berier and Fariba Adelkhah are two of the Iranian-French citizens imprisoned in Iran, mentioned in the statement by the French Foreign Ministry.

In another part of the statement, the French foreign policy apparatus cited Ebrahim Raisi’s long-standing presence in Iran’s judiciary system, highlighting statements by U.S. officials and international bodies accusing the Islamic Republic of human rights abuses and the implementation of death sentences.

“We recall the concerns we have regularly expressed regarding the human rights situation in Iran and our nationals imprisoned there, which we will continue to follow closely,” France said, adding: “We reaffirm our desire for a return to full implementation of the Vienna nuclear agreement, for which French diplomacy is fully mobilized. We will also continue our efforts for the security and stability of the Middle East.”

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch on Saturday said Raisi’s election as Iran’s new president was a blow for human rights and called for him to be investigated over his role in what Washington and rights groups have called the extrajudicial executions of thousands of political prisoners in 1988.

Source » iranbriefing