Iran Urges France to Ensure Security of Media Activities
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi expressed sorrow that an Iranian correspondent and his cameraman were injured by police while covering a recent protest in Paris and said the French police should provide security for professional media activities.
Since immediately after the incident, the Iranian embassy in Paris has seriously followed up on the health conditions of the two media persons from the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), Qassemi said in a statement released on Wednesday.
The Iranian spokesman further expressed the hope that the two would completely recover soon.
He further slammed the French police for this unpleasant incident and said they should ensure security for citizens and guarantee the professional activities of journalists and the press.
“We consider such incidents unacceptable and expect the relevant French authorities to seriously cooperate with our embassy in dealing with the perpetrators of this incident and look into the situation of the IRIB team,” he went on to say.
The two Iranian media crew covering anti-government protests in Paris were heavily injured by the French police and taken to hospital on Tuesday.
Speaking to the Tasnim News Agency on Wednesday, Zeinol Abedin Shahsavar Hosseini, the IRIB correspondent in Paris who had been admitted to hospital after inhaling tear gas during the demonstrations, said he had been discharged from the hospital several hours earlier and expressed the hope that his cameraman would be able to leave the hospital by tonight.
“The incident that happened to me and my colleague was really tough, so much so that we did not think we would survive it,” he added.
He also said the French police should respect the international regulations about media activities.
The Iranian media team was covering the demonstrations by anti-government protesters in Paris when the two were wounded while police were clashing with protesters.
