Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/ITALY: Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has summoned the Iranian ambassador to lodge the protest over what it said was the “unacceptable” response to the women-led protests in the Islamic republic.
Ambassador-designate Mohammad Reza Sabouri was called to a meeting on Wednesday, the Italian foreign ministry said in a note.
According to the AFP, Tajani previously condemned the grave situation in Iran as an “unacceptable shame” saying Rome will take a “hardline” defending women.
Italy prime minister
He, however, said that new Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government wanted to “keep open the door to diplomacy” with Iran, notably over Iran’s nuclear programme.
Protests have gripped Iran since the custodial death of Iranian-Kurdish Mahsa Amini, 22, on September 16 after her arrest for an alleged breach of the country’s strict dress code for women.
The Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights (IHR) said that at least 100 Iranians, arrested during the protests, face charges punishable by death.
Iranian authorities have accused hostile foreign powers, including the United States and European countries, of stoking the unrest in the country.
