Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham on Friday slammed the US State Department’s claims as 'baseless,' while stressing the Islamic Republic’s commitment to ensure the civil rights of its people as its human, national and Islamic responsibility.
Afkham made the remarks in response to the US State Department annual report on human rights conditions in the world in 2014 on Thursday, accusing Iran – among other countries, including Russia and China – of restricting civil liberties.
Rapping the claims as 'repetitive,' Afkham noted the report was issued while Iranian President Rouhani was elected with over 73 percent turnout, his Administration has put on agenda the bill of rights to protect the nation’s civil rights as to fulfil his campaign vows.
Afkham added that on the other hand, the US has seen the highest number of human rights violations against people of color and its ally countries have been busy committing heinous crimes against their own people at the time the report was being drafted.
“Many instances of human rights violations in US including police brutality, widespread discrimination against African-Americans, discrimination against refugees, the increase of anti-Islamic sentiments and restricting religious minorities, as well as Washington’s unconditional support for Israel’s crimes have drawn criticism from major international rights institutions and as such have rendered the concerns raised in the US report as unbelievable,” she said.
Noting that the current nuclear negotiations with the six states did not indicate Iran’s approval of the numerous cases of civil rights violations in the US, Afkham called on Washington to tend to its own domestic responsibilities instead of interfering in the affairs of other countries under the pretext of advocating human rights.
“It is completely clear that such reports prepared with certain objectives, serve as leverage for exerting pressure and bargaining as well as a pretext for interfering into domestic affairs of the other countries,” she said.
Afkham criticized the US for threatening to maintain the anti-Iranian sanctions over human rights issues, saying all sanctions against the Islamic Republic are “illegitimate and lack legal standing.”
Afkham further reiterated that the Iranian government is fully committed to its domestic and international responsibilities and is adamant in improving the rights of its citizens on the basis of the Islamic values and regardless of the claims made in such reports.