White House Calls on Iran’s Regime to End Use of Violence Against Protesters

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. EPA
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. EPA
TT
20

White House Calls on Iran’s Regime to End Use of Violence Against Protesters

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. EPA
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. EPA

The White House has said that the United States stands with the people of Iran, stressing they should have the right to freedom of expression, and calling on the Iranian regime to “end its use of violence against its own citizens.”

“We stand with all the citizens of Iran who are inspiring the world with their bravery, and we will continue to stand with them,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday.

“Women and men in Iran should have the right to freedom of expression and assembly. Women should be able to wear what they want, free from violence or harassment.”

“Iran must end its use of violence against its own citizens simply for exercising their fundamental freedoms, their fundamental rights,” Jean-Pierre told reporters.

She said the US will continue to take action to hold Iranian officials accountable and support the rights of Iranians to protest freely.

She added that Washington will “be imposing further costs on those perpetrators of violence against peaceful protesters.”

Demonstrators have been protesting for the past three weeks against Iran's government after the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old from Iranian Kurdistan, who was arrested on Sept. 13 in Tehran for "unsuitable attire" by the morality police and died in custody.



54 Migrants Rescued from Mediterranean Oil Platform

FILED - 31 May 2025, France, Gravelines: A group of people thought to be migrants onboard a small boat leaving the beach at Gravelines, France, attempting to reach the UK by crossing the English Channel. Photo: Gareth Fuller/PA Wire/dpa
FILED - 31 May 2025, France, Gravelines: A group of people thought to be migrants onboard a small boat leaving the beach at Gravelines, France, attempting to reach the UK by crossing the English Channel. Photo: Gareth Fuller/PA Wire/dpa
TT
20

54 Migrants Rescued from Mediterranean Oil Platform

FILED - 31 May 2025, France, Gravelines: A group of people thought to be migrants onboard a small boat leaving the beach at Gravelines, France, attempting to reach the UK by crossing the English Channel. Photo: Gareth Fuller/PA Wire/dpa
FILED - 31 May 2025, France, Gravelines: A group of people thought to be migrants onboard a small boat leaving the beach at Gravelines, France, attempting to reach the UK by crossing the English Channel. Photo: Gareth Fuller/PA Wire/dpa

Over 50 migrants were headed to the Italian island of Lampedusa Sunday after a charity ship rescued them from an abandoned oil platform in the Mediterranean, where one woman gave birth.

The vessel Astral, operated by the Spain-based NGO Open Arms, rescued the 54 people overnight, the group said in a statement.

The migrants had been trapped on the oil platform for three days after their rubber boat shipwrecked following their departure from Libya on Tuesday, Open Arms said.

On Friday, one of the migrants gave birth to a boy, while another woman had given birth days before. Two other young children were among the group, Open Arms said, according to AFP.

Later Sunday, the charity said that, following the rescue of those on the oil platform, the Astral came upon another 109 people, including four people in the water.

That group, which included 10 children, had also departed from Libya, it said.
Open Arms said they provided life jackets to the migrants before they were rescued by another charity ship, the Louise Michel, which is sponsored by street artist Banksy.

The Louise Michel, a former French navy vessel, was transporting the migrants to a safe port in Sicily, Open Arms said.

It is not unusual for migrants crossing the Mediterranean on leaky and overcrowded boats to seek refuge on offshore oil platforms.

As of June 1, some 23,000 migrants had reached Italy by sea this year, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).