Iran’s top human rights official has lashed out at the British envoy to Tehran, Simon Shercliff, over his "hypocritical" stance on the situation of journalists and freedom of expression in the Islamic Republic.
In an interventionist post on Twitter, which has recently been rebranded as X, on Tuesday, Shercliff asked the Iranian government to “release all arbitrarily detained individuals, including all journalists." He was referring to journalists detained in Iran in the wake of last year’s riots. Some are currently being held and investigated for potential links to rioters.
"Does the British ambassador, who has hypocritically commented on journalism and freedom of expression and posted tweets, have the courage to express concern about the situation of journalists in his own country and pay tribute to them?" Kazem Gharibabadi, secretary of Iran's High Council for Human Rights, said in a post on X on Thursday.
He wondered whether the British ambassador has any explanation about the situation of journalists in his own country.
Gharibabadi also named a number of British journalists who have been detained in the UK, including Martin Banks, Rich Felgate and Rita Pal, on various charges.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday summoned the British envoy to voice strong protest against his remarks, which were contrary to diplomatic norms.
Iran says the 2022 riots in the country were the result of foreign-backed elements exploiting the unfortunate death of a young woman named Mahsa Amini to wreak havoc across the country.
Tehran has over the past months summoned the British envoy several times to protest the UK’s support for rioters.
Iran says London-based media, including BBC Persian and Iran International, have engaged in “media terrorism”, inciting violence and acts of vandalism in the country.