European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Saturday called for imprisoned Iranian protesters to be released as demonstrations against the government in Tehran continued across the country.
Europe stands “fully behind” Iranian protesters, von der Leyen said in a post on X. “We unequivocally condemn the violent repression of these legitimate demonstrations.” She called for the immediate release of imprisoned demonstrators and the restoration of internet access, which has been unavailable in Iran since Thursday.
Protests in Iran erupted in last December, driven by public anger over the country’s brutal economic situation. Within days, however, they morphed into open opposition to the country’s clerical leadership.
The anti-government demonstrations continued on Saturday, amid reports of overwhelmed hospitals and an appeal by the Iranian military to citizens asking them to foil “enemy plots.”
According to the group Human Rights Activists in Iran, at least 65 people had been killed as of Friday, 2,311 individuals had been arrested, and protests had been recorded at 512 locations in 180 cities. Time magazine reported Friday that more than 200 people have died in the protests.
A Western diplomat told POLITICO that reports of a higher death toll than what has currently been reported, citing NGOs, were “credible.” A spokesperson for the exiled opposition group NCRI said that based on initial assessments of the number of killed in smaller Iranian towns, it was likely that the death toll was substantially higher than could be formally confirmed.
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer issued a joint statement Friday calling on the Iranian authorities to “refrain from violence.”
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola backed the protestors on Thursday — earning a rebuke from the Iranian Mission to the EU — and European Commission top diplomat Kaja Kallas called any violence against protestors “unacceptable.”
United States President Donald Trump has come out strongly behind the protesters and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Saturday that the U.S. “supports the brave people of Iran.”
Demonstrators gathered outside the Iranian embassy in Brussels on Saturday. When POLITICO went to the embassy later Saturday afternoon, the protesters were gone, though a man was cleaning red paint from the gate.
Nicholas Vinocur contributed to this report.
Von der Leyen condemns violent crackdown on Iranian protesters
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