Key facts
- Paris police arrested 20 people during a demonstration.
- Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Paris to protest political executions in Iran.
- French police had banned the rally due to a risk of clashes.
- A Paris court upheld the ban on the rally.
- The NCRI, the political arm of the People's Mujahideen Organization of Iran, organized the event.
Paris police arrested 20 people on Saturday as hundreds of demonstrators gathered in defiance of a ban on a rally organized by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). The NCRI, the political arm of the People's Mujahideen Organization of Iran, had planned to hold the rally at Place Vauban near the Les Invalides monument.
French police banned the event, citing a risk of clashes between activists with opposing views, an argument the NCRI described as "bogus." Organizers appealed the ban, but a Paris court upheld it on Saturday. The ban was issued shortly after a call between France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot and his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi, though the French foreign ministry rejected the NCRI's allegation that the ban was linked to this discussion. The NCRI has frequently held rallies in Paris over the years, often attended by thousands of people, including former U.S., European, and Arab officials critical of the Iranian government.