Iranian officials visiting the United States for the UN General Assembly have declined to disclose the size of President Ebrahim Raisi’s accompanying delegation.
Iran typically keeps the size of its presidential delegation for UN General Assembly visits secret, with previous trips having brought controversy when it was revealed that family members accompanied the president’s delegation.
During the current UN General Assembly session, delegation members refused to answer Iran International’s correspondent, Arash Aalaei’s questions on the makeup of the delegation, instead pushing away the camera and insulting Aalaei.
Iran never discloses the size of the delegation accompanying its president in UNGA visits. Sometimes, it later comes out that they even brought family along, causing a media stir back home. Arash Aalaei posed a straightforward question to some of the delegation members: how many… pic.twitter.com/2n9mzHWgeh
— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) September 18, 2023
Last year, when Raisi and his extensive entourage departed from the United States, they did so with a substantial amount of goods, in spite of ordinary Iranians struggling to make ends meet amid a 50-percent annual inflation rate.
On a separate occasion, Iran International correspondent Maryam Rahmati confronted Raisi before a meeting in New York on Tuesday, asking, “Mr. Raisi, are you aware that 520 people have been killed on the streets of Iran since the death of Mahsa Amini? Have you inquired with the security forces about the reasons behind these street killings?” However, Raisi remained silent and did not provide a response.
"Mr. Raisi, do you know that 520 people have been killed in the streets of Iran since the killing of Mahsa Amini? Have you asked security forces why they killed people in the streets?" @IranIntl's @maryam_rahmati asked Iran's president on the sidelines of a meeting in New York.… pic.twitter.com/ifUKBMFYeI
— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) September 19, 2023
Raisi arrived in New York on September 18 to participate in the 78th UN General Assembly. Alongside his trip, a prisoner exchange took place between Iran and the United States.
Source » iranintl