France also in the firing line IRNA also reported that the head of the French Embassy in Tehran had been summoned. Zam had been granted political asylum in France and was living there, but was apparently seized in Iraq by Iranian authorities while travelling. France’s Foreign Ministry called the execution “a barbarous and unacceptable act” and a “grave blow” to freedom of speech in Iran.
Zam, 47, had been sentenced to death in June after a “corruption on Earth” conviction — a term often used to denote charges involving espionage or efforts to overthrow the Iranian government. He was hanged on Saturday, according to Iranian state television.