Mr. President,

The Kingdom of the Netherlands aligns itself with the EU statement. We express our appreciation for the important work of the Special Rapporteur.

We remain gravely concerned about the human rights situation in Iran. We condemn the widespread and disproportionate use of force against peaceful demonstrators and ill treatment of detainees, including minors. The many credible reports of sexual and gender based violence being used as a means of torture against women in detention, are deeply concerning.

We welcome the release of thousands of prisoners but remain alarmed by the surge in executions we have seen this year, as well as the number of individuals that have been convicted to death.

Reports about large-scale poisoning of young girls at schools are deeply disturbing. We emphasize the importance of conducting a thorough and independent investigation, to be able to hold those responsible accountable.

We reiterate our call upon Iran to cooperate with the Special Rapporteur and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and with the International Independent Fact Finding Mission.

Special Rapporteur, how can accountability be ensured when the authorities are not willing to cooperate? And could you elaborate on your cooperation with the work of the Fact Finding Mission and how synergy between both mandates is ensured?