France condemns 'brutal repression' in Ira

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner condemned Iran's "brutal repression" of street demonstrations that left several dead.
Paris – French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner on Sunday condemned Iran's "brutal repression" of street demonstrations that left several dead and rejected Tehran's claims of Western meddling.


Kouchner reiterated French calls for "the full light to be shed" on the disputed 12 June presidential election that led to mass protests over the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

"I learned with great concern that the demonstrations in Tehran yesterday ended with several victims including some who died," said Kouchner in a statement.

"I condemn this brutal repression. I call for the immediate release of all detained persons," he added.

Iranian state television reported that at least 10 people had died and more than 100 were wounded in Tehran during mass demonstrations on Saturday in support of opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi.

Kouchner called on Iranian authorities to allow journalists to work freely and hit back at claims by Tehran that the United States and Britain had a hand in fomenting the protests.

"It is not with such insults that the Iranian government will respond to the aspirations of its people," he said.

"We reject these accusations."

"We do not want in any way to make decisions for the Iranians about their future.

"It is precisely the Iranian voters' freedom of choice that prompts us to call for the full light to be shed on this election that is contested by all the defeated candidates, by eminent Shiite religious figures and by a popular movement that is courageously leading a struggle for transparency and justice."Paris – French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner on Sunday condemned Iran's "brutal repression" of street demonstrations that left several dead and rejected Tehran's claims of Western meddling.

Kouchner reiterated French calls for "the full light to be shed" on the disputed 12 June presidential election that led to mass protests over the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.