European Union nations on Tuesday called in Iranian ambassadors to express new alarm over violence on the streets of Tehran as the world again sought to pressure the Islamic government over its crackdown.
Japan also expressed concern as Iran ruled out cancelling a disputed presidential vote.
At least five European countries called in the Iranian ambassadors to protest over events in Tehran. France summoned Iran’s ambassador for the second time in eight days to condemn what it called the “brutal repression” of protests.
A senior French Foreign Ministry official expressed “great concern with developments in Iran” and reiterated France’s demand that “full light be shed on the honesty of the presidential vote”, said a ministry spokesperson.
“He reasserted our condemnation of the brutal repression of protests that have left many dead,” said spokesperson Frederic Desagneaux.
Czech Republic, Finland, The Netherlands and Sweden also summoned the Iranian envoys in their capitals.
A high-ranking Dutch Foreign Ministry official condemned “excessive violence” against protesters during a meeting with Iran’s charge d’affaires, according to a ministry spokesperson.
The Czech government, which holds the rotating European Union presidency, summoned Iran’s representative in Prague on Monday and called on other EU countries to follow suit.
Britain, Italy and Germany have all warned their nationals against travelling to Iran, with London also pulling out the families of embassy staff after students threatened the Tehran mission.
Groups opposed to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have staged almost daily rallies to protest at alleged fraud and widespread irregularities in the June 12 election, which returned him to power.
State media has said at least 17 people have been killed and many more wounded in the unrest that poses the most serious challenge to the Islamic government in 30 years.
Iranian authorities have hit back at their critics, however, accusing Western governments, particularly Britain and the United States, of meddling.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has voiced growing concern about the violence and urged “an immediate stop to the arrests, threats and use of force.”
He appealed to the government and the opposition “to resolve peacefully their differences through dialogue and legal means”.
Japan on Tuesday called for “a peaceful resolution” to the crisis.
“Japan is extremely concerned about the casualties that have resulted from the protests,” Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone said in a statement.
“A situation that results in such victims should be avoided. Japan strongly requests a peaceful resolution. Japan believes that granting each opinion and view the appropriate amount of respect is essential.”
Foreign media have been restricted in reporting the crisis, with bans on covering demonstrations, and some Western outlets have been accused of fomenting the violence and acting as the “mouthpiece of rioters”.
Despite the restrictions, images of police action have spread worldwide via amateur video over the internet.
Dramatic footage of the final moments of Neda Agha Soltan, a young woman whose death during protests in Tehran has made her a symbol for the opposition, has been flashed around the world.
Neda, seen after she was reportedly shot in the chest on Saturday, was an innocent bystander targeted by Basij militia, her fiancé, Caspian Makan, told BBC Persian television. — AFP