Blinken, Baerbok Affirm Support for Iranian Protesters

The US and German foreign ministers attend a forum in the historic western German city of Münster ahead of a G7 meeting (EPA)
The US and German foreign ministers attend a forum in the historic western German city of Münster ahead of a G7 meeting (EPA)
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Blinken, Baerbok Affirm Support for Iranian Protesters

The US and German foreign ministers attend a forum in the historic western German city of Münster ahead of a G7 meeting (EPA)
The US and German foreign ministers attend a forum in the historic western German city of Münster ahead of a G7 meeting (EPA)

The US and German foreign ministers on Thursday strongly expressed their support for the protests in Iran, stressing that the issue would play a bigger role at the two-day G7 meeting in the western German city of Münster on Friday.

“This is really a moment saying we bring up a human rights issue, we bring up an issue of democracy and freedom at this G7 meeting to coordinate the different bilateral actions we are doing, because we are running out of time,” said Annalena Baerbok during talks with Anthony Blinken.

The two ministers attended the US-German Futures Forum entitled “The Future of Democracy in a Digital World,” ahead of the G7 foreign ministers meeting.

The German FM then criticized the Iranian government for the violent security crackdown on the protest movement.

She said that for weeks one has been experiencing “the brutal violence with which the Iranian regime is treating its own citizens. How it beats its youth, its society, while its people are dying.”

Baerbok then commented on Germany’s statement on Thursday urging its citizens to leave Iran or risk arbitrary arrest and long prison terms there, warning that dual nationals were particularly at risk.

“The German move comes in response to the tight security situation,” she stressed, according to Germany’s news agency.

Baerbok also said: “It’s not only women but the diversity of the Iran society that is saying: enough, and we want to live in freedom like every-many other countries.”

For his part, Blinken said that with regard to technology, “one of the things that we’re trying to do together is to make sure that Iranians have the ability to communicate with each other and with the outside world.”

He added: “Technology is at the heart of that, making sure that there are no barriers to the extent we have anything to say about it to that technology getting to people who need it and want to use it.”

Germany hosts and leads the meeting of G7 foreign ministers in Münster on Thursday and Friday.

The G7 includes Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Canada, the US, and Britain.

Shortly before the start of the G7 meeting, dozens of people gathered in the German city to show support for the Iranians, according to AFP.



Pro-Palestinian Activists Charged with Damaging Planes at UK Air Base are Held in Custody

An activist from Palestine Action sprays a military aircraft engine with red paint at RAF Brize Norton, to damage it, in Carterton, Britain, June 20, 2025, in this still image obtained from handout video. The group's action was in protest of British military assistance to Israel, claiming that they, "interrupted Britain's direct participation in the commission of genocide and war crimes across the Middle East", stating on their website. Palestine Action/Handout via REUTERS/File photo
An activist from Palestine Action sprays a military aircraft engine with red paint at RAF Brize Norton, to damage it, in Carterton, Britain, June 20, 2025, in this still image obtained from handout video. The group's action was in protest of British military assistance to Israel, claiming that they, "interrupted Britain's direct participation in the commission of genocide and war crimes across the Middle East", stating on their website. Palestine Action/Handout via REUTERS/File photo
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Pro-Palestinian Activists Charged with Damaging Planes at UK Air Base are Held in Custody

An activist from Palestine Action sprays a military aircraft engine with red paint at RAF Brize Norton, to damage it, in Carterton, Britain, June 20, 2025, in this still image obtained from handout video. The group's action was in protest of British military assistance to Israel, claiming that they, "interrupted Britain's direct participation in the commission of genocide and war crimes across the Middle East", stating on their website. Palestine Action/Handout via REUTERS/File photo
An activist from Palestine Action sprays a military aircraft engine with red paint at RAF Brize Norton, to damage it, in Carterton, Britain, June 20, 2025, in this still image obtained from handout video. The group's action was in protest of British military assistance to Israel, claiming that they, "interrupted Britain's direct participation in the commission of genocide and war crimes across the Middle East", stating on their website. Palestine Action/Handout via REUTERS/File photo

Four pro-Palestinian protesters were held in custody Thursday after their first appearance in a London court on charges they damaged two Royal Air Force planes with red paint and crowbars.

The charges come after the group Palestine Action said two of its members entered RAF Brize Norton on June 20 and used electric scooters to approach two Voyager jets used for air-to-air refueling. The protesters used repurposed fire extinguishers to spray paint into the planes’ jet engines and caused further damage with crowbars, according to the group, which released video footage of the incident, The AP news reported.

The four, all between the ages of 22 and 35, are charged with conspiracy to commit criminal damage and conspiracy to enter a prohibited place for purposes prejudicial to the interests of the UK, counterterror police said in a statement. The Crown Prosecution Service will argue that the offenses have a “terrorist connection,” police said.

The group did not enter pleas in Westminster Magistrates’ Court. They were scheduled to appear July 18 at the Central Criminal Court.

Palestine Action has claimed responsibility for a series of incidents targeting Israeli defense contractors in the UK and other sites linked to the war in Gaza.

Following the incident at RAF Brize Norton, the government introduced legislation to ban Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. The measure, being debated in Parliament, would make it a criminal offense to belong to or support the group, with a maximum of 14 years in prison.

Palestine Action said its protests are designed to end international support for Israel’s war in Gaza.

Planes from Brize Norton, 70 miles (112 kilometers) northwest of London, regularly fly to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, Britain’s main air base for operations in the Middle East.