Rouhani slams Trump as "meddlesome" on Iran's protests

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Local media reported that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday criticized US President Donald Trump for sympathizing the Iranian anti-government protesters.

"This guy (Trump) who is trying today to sympathize with our people has forgotten that a few months ago he called the Iranian nation terrorist," Rouhani said in the cabinet meeting on Sunday.

"This guy who is against the Iranian nation from head to toe has no right to sympathize with them," Tehran Times quoted him as saying.

Over the past days, anti-government protests erupted in some major Iranian cities. In some cases, they turned violent and featured clashes between protesters and the police.

On Sunday, Habibollah Khojastehpour, deputy governor of Iran's Lorestan province, confirmed that two people were killed overnight in western Iran in anti-government protests.

Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest against Iran's role in Aleppo, near the Iranian Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. /Reuters Photo

Khojastehpour said that the two people were killed in Dorood, in Lorestan Province, following protests in the city.

He blamed foreign intelligence agencies for flaring up peaceful protests.

In a tweet on Friday, Trump made remarks about the recent protests in Iran and said the Iranian government should "respect their people's rights, including the right to express themselves."

Iran's Foreign Ministry on Saturday also condemned US "interference" in the country's internal affairs.

In a statement, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said that "meddling" remarks of the US president and his support for recent protests in some Iranian cities are "opportunistic and deceitful."

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On Sunday, Rouhani stressed that people should express their grievances in a way that would lead to better living conditions for citizens and improve investment in the country.

"Some of the economic problems people have dated back to some years ago, while some others are related to the present day. The government and nation should join hands and help each other," said the Iranian president.

"However, the criticisms of the people don't pertain to the economy alone. People have things to say about corruption and transparency. They say things should be transparent," he said.

"People criticize that corruption should be fought more seriously, and why some issues are not disclosed to them properly. Criticism in the country's entire affairs is a right of the people and we believe that the government and country belong to people and people should be able to well express what they wish to," he said.

"We welcome criticism. And the related bodies should open the way for people's legal criticism and protest, and even demonstrations and congregation. This is a right of the people," Rouhani added.

Also on Sunday, Qasemi condemned a statement by the Canadian government about recent protests in Iran as a violation of the international obligations of Canada and said it lacks any legal value.

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"The Islamic Republic of Iran regards the meddlesome position of the Canadian government as a violation of the country's legal and international obligations," Qasemi said, according to Tasnim news agency.

In a statement on Sunday, Global Affairs Canada, which manages the country's diplomatic and consular relations, voiced its support for the recent protests in Iran.

（With inputs from agencies）

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