Oh dear. It seems that the Eurocrats of Brussels have blundered again. Following the news of the Iranian president’s death, most western governments have chosen to keep a dignified silence. Hardly a surprise, perhaps, given that President Raisi was, in the words of Sky News, the ‘man who launched the first direct attack on Israel in his country’s history and a hardliner on whose watch hundreds of Iranians have been killed in the brutal repression of recent women-led protests.’
Not necessarily the kind of person who necessarily inspires the warmest of tributes from self-described democrats then. So it was to some surprise that Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, has used this occasion to issue a heartfelt tribute to the man known as the ‘Butcher of Tehran.’ Michel claimed to be speaking for 450 million Europeans on Twitter/X when he wrote this morning that:
The EU expresses its sincere condolences for the death of President Raisi and Foreign Minister Abdollahian, as well as other members of their delegation and crew in a helicopter accident.
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