Spokesman for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmaeil Baghaei, described French policy as "hypocritical" in response to statements by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, who claimed that the Iranian people "are the biggest losers in the war."

In a post on the "X" platform, Baghaei stated: "Mr. Minister, it seems that hypocrisy and insincerity remain, to this day, prominent features of French political culture—the very same vice that Molière precisely addressed in his 1664 play Tartuffe or The Hypocrite, saying 'hypocrisy is a fashionable vice.'"

He added: "You remained silent at a time when Iranian cities were being ruthlessly bombed, and innocent Iranians were being brutally annihilated in Minab, Tehran, Lamerd, Isfahan, and elsewhere. In fact, you actually colluded with the aggressors. Today, in alignment with the political interests of your regime, your consciences have suddenly and selectively awakened, and you shamelessly lecture Iranians about human rights!"

Baghaei concluded with condemnation: "What astonishing hypocrisy and insincerity!"

The French Foreign Minister had stated in an interview with the France Info television channel: "They (the Iranian people) are the biggest victims of this war, trapped between oppression on one side and bombardment on the other. We will not forget the massacres of January, when state violence indiscriminately targeted peaceful protesters."