LONDON

European countries condemned Iran's "state violence" on Tuesday against demonstrators, with several nations summoning Iranian envoys to demand Tehran respect the "freedoms and basic rights” of Iranians.

The UK summoned the Iranian envoy to demand Tehran "answer for the horrific reports" about violence and killings of demonstrators, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said in an update on Iran in the House of Commons.

The French Foreign Ministry said the Iranian envoy was summoned to the ministry as Paris condemned "in the strongest terms the state violence inflicted indiscriminately on peaceful demonstrators."

Germany also summoned the Iranian ambassador to protest the violent crackdown on demonstrations, as Chancellor Friedrich Merz predicted that the regime is living through its "final days and weeks."

Separately, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he summoned Mohammad Reza Sabouri because the "extremely high price" in blood being paid by protesters was "absolutely unacceptable."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the rising number of casualties is "horrifying."

"I unequivocally condemn the excessive use of force and continued restriction of freedom," she said, adding that in close cooperation with the bloc's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, additional sanctions on those responsible for the repression will be swiftly proposed.

Spain joined and summoned the Iranian ambassador, Reza Zabib, to convey its rejection of Tehran’s crackdown on protesters, according to Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares.

"We want to express our strong repudiation and condemnation of what has been happening for days in Iran," Albares told Catalunya Radio. "We are watching this closely and with great concern."

Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen wrote on US social media company X that Iran’s regime has shut down the internet "to be able to kill and oppress in silence."

"I will summon the Iranian ambassador this morning," said the foreign minister.

The Portuguese Foreign Ministry said it summoned the Iranian envoy to condemn "violent repression of the demonstrations" and to make clear that the rights of Iranians must be respected.

Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel also summoned the Iranian envoy, expressing that he was "deeply shocked by the bloody repression of peaceful demonstrations in Iran."

Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin noted that his country already has sanctions against Iran, along with his EU colleagues.

"We have called for an end to the repression. There is a need for different governance, greater freedoms, the right to free assembly and free speech," he noted.

Iran has been rocked by protests since late December, beginning at Tehran’s Grand Bazaar on Dec. 28, amid a sharp depreciation of the Iranian rial and worsening economic conditions. Demonstrations later spread to several cities across the country.

Iranian officials have accused the US and Israel of backing "riots" and "terrorism."

There are no official casualty figures, but HRANA, a US-based rights group, said that at least 646 people have been killed, including security forces and protesters, with more than 1,000 injured.

The group reported that more than 10,000 have been detained at 585 locations nationwide, including 186 cities across all 31 provinces.