During his trip to New York to continue another round of nuclear talks, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif made controversial remarks about political prisoners in Iran. An online backlash forced him to respond on his Facebook page.
In an April 28 interview with Charlie Rose on PBS, Zarif said, “We do not jail people for their opinions. The government has a plan to improve, enhance human rights in the country. As every government should. And I believe we have an obligation as a government to our own people to do that. But people who commit crimes, who violate the laws of the country, cannot hide by being a journalist, being a political activist. People have to observe the law.”