Ceremony to accredit Iran's Irish ambassador postponed

An accreditation ceremony for the new Iranian ambassador to Ireland has been postponed due to weeks-long protests in the country.

Thousands of people are believed to be dead following massive anti-government protests in Iran, which began on 28 December.

The Iranian ambassador designate, Eshagh Al Habib, was due to attend a ceremony of credentials in Dublin on Tuesday morning, which would allow him to formally take up his role.

However, the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs said the decision was made to postpone in light of the protests which have seen "significant numbers of Iranians killed or injured" as well as a communications blackout in the country.

Before an ambassador can carry out their work in Ireland, they must first be officially welcomed by the Irish president at Áras an Uachtaráin (the official residence of the Irish president).

They are only allowed to fulfil their duties once the president accepts their credentials at a ceremony in the State Reception Room, Irish broadcaster RTÉ reports.

Two other ambassadors - the Japanese Ambassador to Ireland, Miyagawa Manabu, and the Pakistani Ambassador to Ireland, Mariam Aftab, were welcomed by President Catherine Connolly on Tuesday morning.

Irish opposition parties have welcomed the government's decision to postpone the ceremony.

Sinn Féin TD (MP) Matt Carthy described it as an "appropriate response at this time", RTÉ report.

Irish Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman said Ireland should be "using every diplomatic technique" to highlight the seriousness of what is happening in Iran, and that it is "absolutely vital" the government highlight concerns about developments.

Both the Irish Labour Party and the Social Democrats said the move was correct, and described their concern about what was happening in Iran.