Iranian MPs face backlash over selfies with Mogherini
Iran's parliamentarians are under fire for taking selfies with visiting EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.
Hassan Rouhani was inaugurated for a second presidential term during an Aug. 5 ceremony at Iran’s parliament. During a 30-minute speech, he spoke of more cooperation with the world. It was a relatively mild speech, with the exception of his vowing to reciprocate against sanctions and his stating that this was the era of the “mother of all negotiations” and not the “mother of all bombs.”
On Iranian social media and in news reports, much of the substance of Rouhani’s speech was overshadowed, however, by events taking place on the sidelines of the inauguration. A number of Reformist parliamentarians from the List of Hope faction enthusiastically lined up to take pictures and selfies with the EU’s top diplomat, Federica Mogherini, who was instrumental in negotiating the nuclear deal between Iran and the six world powers.
