Italy summons Iran’s ambassador-designate for failing to present credentials

Dec. 27 () –

The Italian Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, has summoned for this Wednesday the designated ambassador of Iran, Mohammad Reza Saburi, in protest for not having yet presented his credentials at the Quirinal Palace.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, this step has also been taken due to the “seriousness” of the situation in Iran as a result of the anti-government protests that have broken out in the country over the death of the young Mahsa Amini, as reported by the ADnkronos news agency.

Iranian authorities have so far executed two people convicted for their role in the mobilizations, while several thousand have been detained. Among them there are more than 20 who face capital punishment, according to a report published on December 10 by the local newspaper ‘Etemad’.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard recently confirmed that more than 300 people have died since the start of the protests, which was the first official balance since the start of the mobilizations over the death of Amini, a member of the Iranian Kurdish minority. The figure is lower than that provided by the NGO Iran Human Rights, which points to more than 400 deaths due to the repression by the security forces.