Iran’s HRC Asks UN to Address Saudi Airport Abuse
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Judiciary's Human Rights Council (HRC) in a statement on Tuesday called on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to consider legal measures regarding the case of molestation of two Iranian teenage pilgrims at Jeddah's airport.
The statement said Iran's Human Rights Council considers the Saudi officers' abuse of two Iranian teenagers in Jeddah as very regrettable, dangerous, and worrying.
The two Iranian teenage boys were harassed by the Saudi officers at Jeddah's King Abdulaziz International Airport when the offenders took them away during body search, citing suspicion.
"We cannot think of the regrettable event … merely as an offense committed by one or two security officers, because there are indications that we are faced with a systematic and very dangerous trend," Iran's HRC added in the statement.
It is further stressed in the statement that Iran expects the UNHRC to strongly stand against the recurrence and spread of such acts.
“Based on articles 44 and 45 of the International Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Islamic Republic of Iran reserves the right to firmly pursue the dangerous and obscene event through international mechanisms,” the statement added.
Iran suspended the Umrah (minor) Hajj pilgrimage on Monday in the wake of the event, saying the situation will be normalized once Riyadh hands out the maximum punishment to the offenders.
In a Saturday letter to the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati, President Rouhani tasked the country’s officials at the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization and the Foreign Ministry to stay in touch with the Saudi officials and pursue the case seriously.
He also called on the Iranian officials to make sure that the offenders are punished and the security of the Iranian pilgrims are guaranteed.