New Delhi [India], January 24 : Iran's ambassador to India, Mohammad Fathali, appreciated India's stand on the United Nations Human Rights Council's (UNHRC) 39th special session to address the deteriorating human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
India voted against the resolution at the UNHRC calling for increased scrutiny of the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran, aligning itself with a group of countries that opposed what they described as a selective and politically driven initiative.
The resolution sought to address what sponsors termed a deteriorating human rights situation in Iran. India's vote placed it among a minority of states rejecting the measure, while several others abstained.
The resolution was adopted at the session by 25 votes in favour, seven against and 14 abstentions.
Reacting to India's vote, in a statement on X, Iranian Ambassador to India Mohammad Fathali welcomed New Delhi's stance, saying, "I extend my sincere gratitude to the Government of India for its principled and firm support of I.R. of Iran at the UN_HRC, including opposing an unjust and politically motivated resolution. This stance reflects India's commitment to justice, multilateralism, and national sovereignty."
Earlier, noting that the history of the relationship and collaboration between Iran and India dates back hundreds of years before the emergence of Islam, Abdul Majid Hakeem Ilahi, the Representative of Iran's Supreme Leader, said that India philosophical texts were studied in Iran.
He said India's achievements in mathematics, astronomy, and medicine were studied in Iran and people of Iran have always learned about the relationship between the two ancient civilisations.
"The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran always insists on good relations and collaboration between Iran and India...I hope that in Chabahar they will work nicely...The history of the relationship and collaboration between Iran and India goes to 3,000 years ago, before the emergence of Islam. Even at that time, we were using philosophical books of India," he said.
"Even at the university, we studied philosophical books of India, and in mathematics, astronomy, and medicine, we were also using your civilisation, your knowledge, and we always learned through our schools the relationship between Iran and India," he added.
Meanwhile, Iranian state television has released the first official death toll from the recent anti-government protests that engulfed the country, reporting that 3,117 people were killed during the crackdown, as reported by Al Jazeera. In a statement carried by Press TV on Wednesday, Iran's Martyrs Foundation said that 2,427 of those killed in the demonstrations were civilians and security forces.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has said 4,519 were killed during the wave of demonstrations, including 4,251 protesters, 197 security personnel, 35 people aged under 18 and 38 bystanders who it says were neither protesters nor security personnel.
HRANA also said 9,049 additional deaths were under review, as per Al Jazeera.
The demonstrations, which began in late December with shopkeepers protesting against the flailing currency and the cost of living, snowballed into a widespread anti-government movement, as per Al Jazeera.
The government crackdown was widely condemned, with US President Donald Trump threatening to intervene in support of the protesters.