Paris: Tehran’s Violations of International Law Will Not Remain Unanswered

A woman carries a noose during a rally against the Iranian regime in Paris last week (AFP)
A woman carries a noose during a rally against the Iranian regime in Paris last week (AFP)
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Paris: Tehran’s Violations of International Law Will Not Remain Unanswered

A woman carries a noose during a rally against the Iranian regime in Paris last week (AFP)
A woman carries a noose during a rally against the Iranian regime in Paris last week (AFP)

France has joined the rest of the world in condemning the execution of Alireza Akbari, a former Iranian official with dual nationality who was tried on charges of spying for British intelligence.

French President Emmanuel Macron condemned on Saturday Iran’s execution of Iranian-British national Akbari, describing it as a “despicable and barbaric act.”

Macron also expressed his solidarity with Britain and the Iranian people.

The French president’s denunciation followed the French Foreign Ministry issuing a statement in which it condemned “in the strongest terms” Iran authorities for carrying out Akbari’s death sentence.

The Ministry also expressed its “solidarity” with Britain.

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna summoned Iran's charge d'affaires in Paris on Saturday over the execution of Akbari, the ministry said in a statement.

“He was also warned that Iran's repeated violations of international law cannot go unanswered, particularly with regard to the treatment of foreign nationals whom it arbitrarily detains,” the statement added.

The statement concluded by reaffirming “France's firm opposition to the death penalty in any place and under any circumstances.”

This comes as French-Iranian relations continue to deteriorate, especially after the uproar caused by the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo publishing caricatures of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Iran announced Thursday the closure of a Tehran-based French research institute in protest against cartoons of its supreme leader.

For his part, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian threatened that “the insulting and indecent act of a French publication in publishing cartoons against the religious and political authority will not go without an effective and decisive response.”

While the EU is reviewing the possibility of a fourth basket of sanctions on Iranian authorities due to their bloody suppression of popular protests and the role Tehran is playing in providing Russia with the drones used in the war on Ukraine, recent developments will likely prompt Paris to proceed with considerations for blacklisting the Iranian Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization.



Vatican Cancels Pope’s Weekend Engagements as He Battles ‘Complex’ Infection 

Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
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Vatican Cancels Pope’s Weekend Engagements as He Battles ‘Complex’ Infection 

Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)

Pope Francis, who began his fifth day in hospital on Tuesday for what doctors have described as a "complex" respiratory infection, will not take part in this weekend's Holy Year events, the Vatican said on Tuesday.

The 88-year-old pontiff has been suffering from a respiratory infection for more than a week and was admitted to Rome's Gemelli hospital on Friday.

A planned public papal audience set for Saturday had been cancelled "due to the health condition of the Holy Father", the Vatican said in a brief statement.

A papal mass scheduled for Sunday will still take place, but will be led instead by a senior Vatican official, it added.

The Vatican said on Monday that doctors had changed the pope's drug therapy for the second time during his hospital stay to tackle a "complex clinical situation". They described it as a "polymicrobial infection of the respiratory tract".

Doctors say polymicrobial diseases can be caused by a mix of viruses, bacteria and fungi.

Francis, who has been pontiff since 2013, has had influenza and other health problems several times over the past two years. As a young adult he developed pleurisy and had part of one lung removed, and in recent times has been prone to lung infections.