UN Secretary-Normal António Guterres congratulates Iran on anniversary

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UNITED NATIONS: U.N. Secretary-Normal António Guterres despatched a congratulatory message to Iran marking the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution , a transfer that drew sharp criticism from anti-regime Iranian voices and human rights advocates.

In a letter addressed to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Guterres "prolonged his warmest congratulations on the Nationwide Day of the Islamic Republic of Iran," describing such anniversaries as a possibility to replicate on a rustic’s path and contributions to the worldwide neighborhood, based on Iranian state and regional reporting printed Wednesday.

The message comes weeks after the U.N.’s top human rights body condemned Iran over abuses tied to a violent crackdown on anti-government protests and mandated additional investigation into alleged violations, with some reviews citing casualty figures that would attain 30,000, pending verification.

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U.N. Secretary-Normal António Guterres speaks on the Excessive-Stage Phase of the fifty fifth session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, on Feb. 26, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone through AP)

Moreover, based on the NGO U.N. Watch, Iran’s international minister, Abbas Araghchi, is predicted to deal with the U.N. Human Rights Council on Feb. 23.

In opposition to that backdrop, critics stated the secretary-general’s congratulatory message risked sending a conflicting sign.

"The UN Secretary-Normal’s congratulatory message will not be merely diplomatic routine — it's abjectly tone-deaf," stated Iran analyst Banafesh Zand. "At a time when the Iranian folks proceed to endure executions, repression , and systemic abuse by the hands of the Islamic Republic, providing formal congratulations to the architects of that struggling reads as an ethical failure."

Zand added that such gestures "erode [the U.N.’s] credibility and deepen the wound for these nonetheless combating for freedom inside Iran."

Andrew Ghalili, coverage director on the Nationwide Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI), stated the message amounted to legitimizing a repressive system.

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Automobiles burn in a avenue throughout a protest over the collapse of the foreign money’s worth in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 8, 2026. (Stringer/WANA (West Asia Information Company) through REUTERS)

"The United Nations is legitimizing a regime constructed on repression, executions and the systematic destruction of primary freedoms," Ghalili stated. "Providing celebratory recognition to the Islamic Republic on the anniversary of its revolution ignores the bloodshed, the repression of protesters and the continued hostage-taking of harmless folks."

Human rights teams have repeatedly warned that impunity has enabled ongoing abuses in Iran, urging U.N. member states to pursue accountability for what they describe as systemic violations and mass killings of protesters .

Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the Secretary-Normal, instructed Fox Information Digital throughout a press briefing that the message to Tehran was a part of a long-standing U.N. protocol.

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Iranian Overseas Minister Abbas Araghchi holds a joint press convention with Turkish Overseas Minister Hakan Fidan in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 30, 2026. (Arif Hudaverdi Yaman/Anadolu through Getty Photographs)

"The letter that got here out from the Secretary-Normal is an ordinary letter, "Yearly, every member state will get the very same letter… congratulating them on the nationwide vacation and conveying greatest needs to the folks of that nation."

The spokesperson added that related letters have been despatched the identical day to different international locations marking nationwide holidays and "shouldn't be interpreted… as an endorsement of no matter insurance policies could also be put in place by the federal government." He stated the message "doesn’t change the Secretary-Normal’s view" on Iran, noting Guterres has beforehand spoken out in opposition to the crackdown and violence.

On reviews that Iran’s international minister is predicted to deal with the Human Rights Council later this month, the spokesperson stated the matter falls beneath the council’s authority.

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"That’s a call of the Human Rights Council," he stated. "It is a membership group. Each member state has a proper to deal with legislative our bodies… It’s not throughout the Secretariat’s authority to bar member states from addressing a legislative physique."

Efrat Lachter is a world reporter for Fox Information Digital overlaying worldwide affairs and the United Nations. Observe her on X @efratlachter. Tales could be despatched to efrat.lachter@fox.com .