European statements in condemnation of Iran’s execution of 27-year-old wrestler Navid Afkari have been met with a barrage of fire from the country’s hard-liners who typically view such criticism as interference in the Islamic Republic’s affairs.
Javan, the ultraconservative daily affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), took particular aim at Hans-Udo Muzel, Germany’s ambassador in Tehran, after the latter posted a chain of tweets in Persian, relaying his government’s message against the Islamic Republic’s “attempt to silence opposing voices.”