Iran Summons Australian Ambassador for Instagram Post Celebrating LGBTQ+ Awareness Day

Latest Developments

Iran’s Foreign Ministry summoned Australia’s ambassador to Tehran over an Instagram post by his embassy celebrating an LGBTQ+ awareness day, Iranian state media reported on September 3. The post featured a photo showing the ambassador, Ian McConville, and two colleagues wearing colorful clothing to mark Australia’s Wear It Purple Day, which seeks to promote LGBTQ+ pride. “Today, and every day, we’re dedicated to creating a supportive environment, where everyone, especially LGBTQIA+ youth, can feel proud to be themselves,” the post said.

In response, an Iranian official “expressed strong objections to the Australian embassy’s move, condemning the content as disrespectful and contrary to Iranian and Islamic cultural norms,” the Islamic Republic News Agency reported. The official also “noted that the embassy’s post contravened international law and the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which mandates respect for the host country’s laws and regulations.”

Expert Analysis

“Iranian authorities have upped the ante and hauled in Australia’s ambassador to Tehran for a mild social media post supporting the global LGBT community. Rather than absorb the infringement, Australia should be seriously considering downgrading ties with Tehran.” — Behnam Ben Taleblu, FDD Senior Fellow

“Once again, the Islamic Republic of Iran is challenging Western ideals by targeting the gay community. Such a regime will not change its policies without meaningful Western countermeasures. Rather than seek a deal with Iran, Washington must reimpose maximum pressure on the regime and execute maximum support for the Iranian people.” — Tzvi Kahn, FDD Research Fellow and Senior Editor

Iran’s Persecution of LGBTQIA+ Citizens

Same-sex relations constitute a capital offense in the Islamic Republic, which has executed numerous gay people since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. According to a 2023 State Department report, “LGBTQI+ persons were often subjected to violence. Security forces harassed, arrested, and detained individuals they suspected or perceived as being LGBTQI+. In some cases, security forces raided houses and monitored internet sites for information on LGBTQI+ persons.”

The report also noted that Iranian law does “not prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or sex characteristics and did not recognize LGBTQI+ individuals, couples, or their families. The law classified gay men and transgender women as having mental disorders and, on those grounds, exempted them from the otherwise mandatory military service for male citizens.”

An Ideological War

Tehran regards gay people as enemies of the state who threaten its revolutionary creed, which regards the West as a licentious and hedonistic society contrary to Islam. In a 2016 speech, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, denounced Western nations for legalizing gay marriage. “They legalize homosexuality in countries,” he said. “Not only do they legalize it, but also they strongly censure those who oppose it. Is there any kind of corruption which is higher than this?”

In 2007, then Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad famously asserted at Columbia University, “In Iran, we don’t have homosexuals like in your country.” But in an interview a year later, he offered a clarification, noting that he intended to draw a distinction between Iranian and American culture. “I didn’t say they don’t exist; I said not the way they are here,” he argued. “In Iran, it’s considered as a very unlikable and abhorrent act. People simply don’t like it. Our religious decrees tell us that it’s against our values.”

Executions Surge in Iran

Tehran’s summons to the Australian ambassador comes amid a broader surge of executions in Iran. According to the Oslo-based nonprofit Iran Human Rights, Tehran has executed 403 people in 2024 to date, including at least 100 Iranians in August alone. On September 2, a group of 11 United Nations experts — including Mai Sato, the special rapporteur on human rights in Iran — condemned Tehran for the surge and called on the regime to halt all death sentences. The experts noted that the executed individuals often failed to receive a fair trial and due process rights. “Wrongful executions are irreversible,” the experts said. “The current implementation of the death penalty in the Islamic Republic of Iran leaves us extremely concerned that innocent individuals may have been executed.”

Related Analysis

“Iran Conducts First Public Execution of 2024 as Hunger Strikes Continue,” FDD Flash Brief

“Wave of Executions Continues in Iran,” FDD Flash Brief

“Iran’s Ideological War on Homosexuality,” by Tzvi Kahn