UK's Johnson calls for meaningful debate in Iran, respect for rights

He looks to the Iranian authorities to allow peaceful protests and look that legitimate concerns

Britain's foreign minister Boris Johnson on Monday called for Iran to engage in meaningful debate about issues raised by protesters which he said were "legitimate and important", as the worst wave of unrest in almost a decade in the Middle Eastern country continued.



Johnson called for freedom of expression and the right to demonstrate peacefully to be respected, after street protests continued for a fifth day and with 13 people reported to have been killed on Monday.

"The UK is watching events in Iran closely. We believe that there should be meaningful debate about the legitimate and important issues the protesters are raising and we look to the Iranian authorities to permit this," he said in a post on Facebook.