More than 30 countries, including the United Kingdom, France and Canada, have issued a joint statement condemning Iran's practice of executing people who participated in protests earlier this year against the regime.
The countries, with the addition of European Union's top diplomat, said they "condemn in the strongest terms the ongoing executions of protesters and use of the death penalty by the Islamic Republic of Iran."
"The use of capital punishment to silence dissent, intimidate communities, and punish individuals exercising their human rights can never be justified," they added. "The people of Iran must be free to exercise their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly without fear."
The collection of nations, which also included Germany, Ireland, Italy and Spain, also called on Iran to "immediately end the use of the death penalty and release all those arbitrarily detained."
"We further call on Iran to listen to the voice of its people as they demand change, and to take meaningful steps toward ensuring respect for human rights," the statement concluded.
Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi responded by saying "countries like France should stop lecturing the world about 'human rights' and international law. The hypocrisy is blatant and embarrassing."
"Your backing of Israel’s genocide in Gaza—and aggression against Iran—has destroyed whatever moral high ground you imagined you had," Araghchi said on social media.
The United Nations estimates that Iran has executed at least 56 people on national security-related charges since March 19, with at least 27 individuals having been involved in the protests at the start of the year.
South Korea's Incheon airport has become the world's busiest for international travelers, as officials credit the boost in traffic in part to sustained tensions in the Middle East amid the Iran war.
Incheon International Airport Corp., the airport’s operator, told the Yonhap News Agency that travelers who would normally have connected through Middle Eastern hubs such as Dubai have been rerouted through Incheon in recent months.
The airport, which is in the capital Seoul, served 38.39 million international passengers in the January-June period, up 6.3% from the year before, according to the operator.
Hapag-Lloyd, one of the world's largest container shipping companies, said disruptions to traffic through the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran war contributed to a 73% year-over-year decline in net profit.
The German company said Thursday in its earnings report that the total profit across all its business segments totaled $83 million, down from $306 million last year.
Operating profit in the Liner Shipping segment fell to $153 million from $167 million, weighed down by higher bunker, insurance, storage, rerouting and inland transportation costs after the strait was shut down.
Altogether, the conflict in the Middle East cost Hapag-Lloyd around $600 million in the second quarter, though strong exports from Asia and improved U.S. demand helped offset some of the impact.
{{#rendered}}Tehran is likely to become more aggressive in the coming days as a new phase approaches, Fox News senior strategic analyst and retired Gen. Jack Keane warned Wednesday, arguing that Iran may believe President Donald Trump will be reluctant to take military action ahead of the midterm elections.
“When they look at this phase here, they see the midterms coming. My gut feel is that they're likely going to get more aggressive because they don't believe the president will do much prior to the midterms in terms of military actions,” Keane said on Fox News' "Special Report."
“But they have miscalculated with him time and time again, and he is totally capable of shutting them down once and for all and crushing him with the ability that he has literally at his fingertips.”
“We have more capability in the region now than we had on Feb. 28, and it all is ready. So that leverage is there. It's his decision to be sure,” he warned.
Keane’s warning came as Trump said Tuesday that the United States has “total” control over the Strait of Hormuz, as Washington and Tehran remain at an impasse over arrangements for reopening the vital waterway.
An Iranian source also told Reuters Wednesday that there were no talks with Washington on extending the June interim agreement, saying Tehran saw “nothing to extend,” with the 60-day negotiating period outlined in the memorandum of understanding fast approaching its Aug. 17 deadline.
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