Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei has assailed France for calling on Tehran to de-escalate, contending that Iran was not the aggressor in the ongoing Middle East war.

“French authorities persist in their Orwellian doublespeak; while remaining acquiescent in the face of the most blatant violations of international law — including the genocide of Palestinians and continued aggression against Lebanon, as well as the blatant illegal US/Israeli war on Iran — they call on Iran to de-escalate!!” Baghaei has written on X.

“Did Iran initiate this war?! Why don’t you call out the aggressors?!” he adds. “This is akin to urging the French Resistance during World War II to de-escalate in the face of the Nazi invasion of France.”