German police detain 11 after Iran embassy protest

BERLIN - Agence France-Presse

RCMP officers patrol outside the Iranian embassy in Ottawa, Friday Sept. 7, 2012. AP photo

German police detained 11 people after a demonstration outside the Iranian embassy in Berlin during which paint and stones were lobbed at the building, police said on Thursday.
 
The protest late on Wednesday was organised by activists, including Iranian refugees, against "repression by the fascist government of the Islamic Republic of Iran against its opponents inside the country", the protesters said in a written statement.
 
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle condemned the "assault" on the embassy, adding that Berlin would do "everything necessary in order to protect the Iranian embassy and all other diplomatic missions", according to a statement.
 
He also telephoned his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi after the incident to express his "great regret".
 
According to Iranian media reports, Salehi told the German minister that Iran expected the incident to be "seriously pursued" and that those responsible be brought to justice for what he called a "hideous act".
 
German police gave no details on the nationality or age of those taken in for questioning and was unable to say whether they had been released.