Jeremy Corbyn was under increasing pressure last night to speak out against the Iranian regime following a week of deadly protests.
The Labour leader has not issued a statement on the unrest which has claimed at least 21 lives.
Mr Corbyn has kept silent despite a long-standing interest in the country and being vice-chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on Iran.
Jeremy Corbyn was paid was paid nearly £20,000 to present a series of programmes for Press TV, the Iranian state-owned television network
Iran has been gripped by a wave of protests that began about economic conditions but have developed into calls for political change
Tory MP Jack Lopresti said: ‘For a leader of the Opposition who aspires to run our great country to appear not to have a view on a very serious matter of foreign policy and the wicked oppression of a people is just staggering.
‘At best Corbyn is a useful fool. At worst if he ever became prime minister his perceived sympathy through his silence in retaliation to the Iranian regime who are the world’s biggest sponsor of global terror would represent a real threat to our national security.’
Mr Corbyn’s silence follows a similar reticence to condemn Venezuela’s socialist leadership during its crackdown on civilian protest last year.
In a sign of a party dissent, Labour MP Wes Streeting said: ‘We should be speaking with one clear voice in support of those in Iran fighting for the basic freedoms we take for granted.
‘The suppression of democracy and oppression of women and gay people isn’t something any of us should be silent about.’
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said yesterday that the unrest was over. ‘We can announce the end of the sedition,’ said Mohammad Ali Jafari, the elite unit’s commander. ‘There were a maximum of 1,500 people in each place and the number of troublemakers did not exceed 15,000 people nationwide.
‘A large number of the trouble-makers at the centre of the sedition, who received training from counter-revolutionaries … have been arrested and there will be firm action against them.’
Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry had called for the Iranian authorities to show restraint.
She said events were highly uncertain, adding: ‘One thing is absolutely clear: The escalation of violence must be stopped.’
A Labour spokesman said Miss Thornberry’s comments reflected Labour’s position and Mr Corbyn agreed with them.
He has supported the Tehran regime in the past and was paid nearly £20,000 to present a series of programmes for Press TV, the Iranian state-owned television network, between 2009 and 2012. He has also appeared at an event to mark the establishment of the government the protesters are trying to topple.
Police used tear gas to break up demonstrations at Tehran University at the weekend
Pro-government demonstrators march in Iran’s holy city of Qom, as of thousands gathered across the country in a show of strength for its Islamic rulers after days of unrest
A Labour spokesman said: ‘Jeremy did not praise the regime but made clear his opposition to nuclear weapons and called for peace through dialogue.’
The protests began last Thursday in the city of Mashhad against price rises and corruption – but turned toward wider anti-government sentiment.
Major General Ali Jafari announced that the unrest was over as tens of thousands of people attended pro-government rallies called to counter the unrest. He added: ‘We can say that this is the end of the 96 sedition,’ referring to the current year – 1396 – in the Persian calendar.
He said ‘security preparedness and people’s vigilance’ had led to the defeat of ‘enemies’ and that the guards had only intervened in a limited way in three provinces.
The general blamed the country’s ‘enemies’ for the protests, accusing them of trying to pose cultural, economic and security threats against Islamic Iran.
His comments echoed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who has blamed unspecified enemies for the uprising.
In a bid to slow the unrest, Tehran shut down access to the messaging service Telegram and the photo-sharing app Instagram, which joined Facebook and Twitter in being banned. And the head of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court reportedly warned that protesters who were arrested could face the death penalty.