Resolution on the brutal repression against protesters in Iran

The European Parliament adopted by 562 votes to 9, with 57 abstentions, a resolution on the brutal repression against protesters in Iran.

The text adopted in plenary was tabled as a joint resolution by the EPP, S&D, ECR, Renew, Greens/EFA groups and Members.

Parliament unequivocally condemned the brutal repression and mass murders perpetrated by the Iranian regime against protesters who have taken to the streets in dozens of cities over the past two weeks. It demanded that the Iranian authorities, led by dictator Ali Khamenei, unconditionally end the violence against peaceful protesters, immediately suspend all executions, and halt the killings and repression of civilians exercising their fundamental rights. It called for the immediate release of all imprisoned protesters and political prisoners.

Members called on the Council to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including the Basij militia and the Quds Force, as full-fledged terrorist organisations without delay. They requested that the EU's global human rights sanctions regime and other EU restrictive measures, including asset freezes and visa bans, be extended and strictly enforced against all Iranian officials involved in the repression.

Expressing its firm support for the courageous Iranian people and recognising the crucial role played by the Women, Life, Freedom movement, Parliament condemned the widespread, brutal, intentional, and disproportionate use of force by Iranian security forces, stressing that the killing of thousands of protesters demonstrates a disturbing shift in the Iranian regimes policy of oppression, moving from deterrence to strategic elimination. The EU is called upon to prepare for all possible scenarios, including the potential fall of the Iranian regime, and to ensure that no perpetrators of repression are granted asylum on the territory of the Union.

Parliament also stressed the illegitimacy and violent nature of the Iranian regime, which is based solely on terror, fear, and intimidation, and opposed to all religious, cultural, and ethnic pluralism. It called on the European Commission and Member States to exert effective pressure on this regime and advocated for a free and democratic transition in Iran.

Condemning the Iranian regimes efforts to censor the protests by cutting internet access and telephone networks across the country, Members called for all bans on online-based communications and services within Iran to be lifted immediately. They urged the EU and its Member States to significantly scale up technical and financial support to ensure secure digital access and the provision of censorship-circumvention tools and digital protection for Iranian civil society, journalists and human rights defenders.

Parliament noted the prominent role played by women and girls in the protests and condemns the regimes systemic oppression of women and other vulnerable groups through laws and regulations that severely restrict freedoms and rights, including the degrading compulsory hijab law and its abusive enforcement. Decrying the appallingly high number of executions carried out in the past two years (1500 people in 2025 alone), Members reaffirmed the EU's opposition to the death penalty and called for its immediate abolition.

Members called on the VP/HR, in coordination with the Member States, to intensify diplomatic engagement in support of the Iranian people by exploring the establishment of an enhanced EU diplomatic presence or representation capable of providing protection, humanitarian assistance and consular support to individuals at risk for exercising their fundamental rights. They called on the Council and the Member States to swiftly expand existing restrictive measures in order to respond urgently and appropriately to the ongoing repression.

Emphasising that the Iranian regime has actively sown chaos and destruction across the region for decades, while engaging in brutal patterns of internal and transnational repression, the resolution condemned the Iranian authorities brutal use of transnational repression. It stressed that Iran continues to constitute the largest and most substantial threat to the security and stability of the broader region and the most significant obstacle to peace.

Parliament stressed that any normalisation of relations with Iran is conditional upon the unconditional release of all political prisoners, the verifiable end of systematic repression, and genuine progress towards democracy and the rule of law. It welcomed the decision by its President, Roberta Metsola, to bar all diplomatic staff and representatives of the Iranian regime from all Parliament premises and called on the Member States to follow suit and adopt similar restrictions.

Text adopted by Parliament, single reading