Iran summons French charge d'affaires over protests

ANKARA (AA) – Iran on Thursday summoned the French charge d'affaires in Tehran over Paris’ stance on ongoing protests over the death of an Iranian woman in police custody.

A Foreign Ministry statement said the envoy was summoned in the absence of the French ambassador, whose term ended, to protest French statements regarding the protests, which it termed as “interference in Iran’s internal affairs”.

"Iran will not tolerate interference in its internal affairs under any circumstances and will take timely and appropriate measures by closely monitoring the positions and movements of foreigners," it added.

Mahsa Amini died in mysterious circumstances after being detained and taken to the headquarters of the morality police in Tehran last week.

While authorities maintain that she died of cardiac arrest, her family claims she was beaten in police custody, which has fueled angry protests across Iran in recent days and drawn condemnation from across the world, including the UK.

Over 41 people have been killed in the protests, which have in recent days taken a violent turn, especially in the capital Tehran.

Many countries in the West have issued strongly-worded statements in recent days over Amini's death in police custody, demanding impartial investigations.

*Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report