Iran summons French envoy over ‘violent response’ to school protests

Iran summoned French ambassador to Tehran Pierre Cochard on Tuesday over Paris’s treatment of protesters demanding better conditions in schools, state media reported, with French police having clashed for days with demonstrators.

Iran accused France of “violent treatment” of the protesters and “extensive and flagrant human rights violations” during the demonstrations, which began late last month and have been accompanied by unrest.

Relations between France and Iran have been strained for months, with the two expelling each other’s diplomats in August.

Iran itself suffered major anti-government protests in January, during which the authorities reported more than 3,000 deaths, blaming “terrorist acts” orchestrated by the United States and Israel. Foreign-based NGOs maintain that security forces fired on protesters.