Tehran, IRNA – Spokesman of the Iranian Foreign Ministry Nasser Kanaani has criticized France for its lack of commitment to human rights principles.

In a tweet posted on Sunday, Kanaani referred to an ongoing police crackdown on anti-government protests in France as he urged the government in Paris to stop using human rights for political purposes.

“Efforts by the French police to resort to violence against protests by citizens of this country is unacceptable,” he said in his Farsi tweet.

“… it is a sign of French government’s lack of commitment to principles of democracy and freedom of expression,” he added.

Tens of thousands of people have been demonstrating in France for weeks to protest a government decision to raise retirement age.

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