Military intervention in Iran, where authorities launched a deadly crackdown on protesters that killed thousands, is not France’s preferred option, its armed forces minister said yesterday.

“I think we must support the Iranian people in any way we can,” Alice Rufo said on the political broadcast “Le Grand Jury”.

But “a military intervention is not the preferred option” for France, she said, adding it was “up to the Iranian people to rid themselves of this regime”. 

Rufo lamented how hard it was to “document mass crimes Iranian regime has carried out against its population” due to a internet shutdown.