Iran Presidential polls: World reaction
Hardliner Iranian cleric Ebrahim Raisi's victory on Saturday in a presidential election drew starkly opposed reactions, with Russia hailing a sign of greater regional stability but some condemning it as a farce.
United States: A State Department spokesperson said the United States regretted Iranians had been denied the chance to vote in a fair election. But Washington would continue talks over Iran's nuclear programme, working with allies and partners.
Israel: Foreign ministry spokesman Lior Haiat said on Twitter that Iran has "elected its most extremist president to date". "Raisi's election is, I would say, the last chance for world powers to wake up before returning to the nuclear agreement, and understand who they are doing business with ... A regime of brutal hangmen must never be allowed to have weapons of mass-destruction." Israeli PM Bennett said.
Russia: "Relations between our countries have been traditionally friendly," Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a message, saying Raisi's election would help develop "constructive bilateral cooperation in many fields and our partnership in international affairs". "This responds entirely to the interests of the Russian and Iranian people and goes towards reinforcing regional stability and security," he said.
Hamas: Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the Palestinian Islamist movement "congratulates" Raisi, adding: "Iran has always been a main, strong and real supporter of the Palestinian resistance and our national cause."
Iranian opposition: Exiled opposition groups hailed what they termed a "boycott" of the presidential polls, where turnout was 48.8 percent. Maryam Rajavi, the leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said the "unprecedented nationwide boycott" had signalled that Iranians had "voted for overthrow of the ruling theocracy".
Gulf and Yemen: The rulers of the Gulf states of Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates all sent congratulatory messages to Raisi, their state news agencies announced. The senior political leader for Yemen's Tehran-backed Huthi rebels, Mahdi al-Mashat, also congratulated Raisi.
Amnesty International: "That Ebrahim Raisi has risen to the presidency instead of being investigated for the crimes against humanity of murder, enforced disappearance and torture, is a grim reminder that impunity reigns supreme in Iran," Amnesty said. It called on the UN Human Rights Council's member states to take "concrete steps to address the crisis of systematic impunity in Iran".
Source: AFP, Reuters