UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday (January 2nd) expressed his "regret" at the rising death toll in anti-government protests in Iran, and called on that country to respect the rights of peaceful protesters, AFP reported.
Tehran said 21 people had died in clashes across the country as thousands of people took to the streets. Police have arrested hundreds of demonstrators.
"We regret the reported loss of life and hope further violence will be avoided. We expect that the rights to peaceful assembly and expression of the Iranian people will be respected," Guterres spokesman Farhan Aziz Haq said.
Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had earlier blamed the country's "enemies" for almost six days of deadly unrest that have shaken the country.
"The enemies have united and are using all their means, money, weapons, policies and security services to create problems for the Islamic regime," Khamenei said.
Meanwhile, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley called on the international community to speak out on the protests in Iran, saying the US would seek emergency UN talks on the situation.
"The people of Iran are crying out for freedom," Haley said at a news conference. "All freedom-loving people must stand with their cause."
She said the US would be seeking emergency sessions of the UN Security Council and the UN Human Rights Commission in the coming days.
