of life, for greater freedom. We believe they deserve that, but it will be up to the Iranian people to manage that peaceful transition. We support that." A group of U.S. Congress lawmakers joined the Iranian Americans from 40 states on 11 December 2018 at an event organized by the Organization of Iranian American Communities (OIAC) in Washington, D.C., to express support for democracy protesters in Iran. – Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that the mass unrest in Iran was an internal affair of the nation and hoped that the crisis would evolve without any bloodshed and violence. He also emphasized that any foreign interference in internal affairs of Iran that may destabilize the situation was unacceptable. – Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said "We believe it is necessary to avoid violence and not succumb to provocations", concerning the reports of people dying and vandalization of public buildings in Iran. He also hoped that foreign interventions would be avoided. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the President of Turkey, condemned the US and Israel for the alleged interference in the internal affairs of Iran. – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the protesters as "heroic" in their "noble quest for freedom". He added, "I heard today Iran's President [Hassan] Rouhani's claim that Israel is behind the protests in Iran. It's not only false. It's laughable. And unlike Rouhani, I will not insult the Iranian people. They deserve better." – Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Boris Johnson tweeted that he was "watching events in Iran with concern" and emphasized citizens' rights to peaceful demonstrations. – French president Emmanuel Macron criticised America and its Middle Eastern allies for loudly supporting the protesters, on 3 January saying that "The official line pursued by the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia, who are our allies in many ways, is almost one that would lead us to war." Security Council meeting On Friday 5 January 2018, following a request by Nikki Haley, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., an emergency meeting was held at the UN Security Council about the violations of the human rights of the Iranian protesters. According to Tayé-Brook Zerihoun, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, videos posted on social media platforms showed protesters being beaten, and government buildings, banks and religious centres burning. Over 1,000 protesters had been arrested. Nikki Haley stated the events that happened during the previous week in Iran needed the attention