Parliament members in Iran are being ridiculed for their mad rush to take selfies with a high-ranking EU diplomat.
Italian politician and High Representative for the EU's Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, visited Iran on Saturday for the country's presidential inauguration.
While on the parliament's floor, Mogherini was mobbed by MP's after the ceremony to mark President Hassan Rouhani's re-election.
Parliament members could be seen craning their neck to get a selfie with Mogherini.
Alireza Salim, a parliament member, called the actions of his colleagues a "self-surrender to the West," adding that a probe into the incident may be warranted if others also take issues with the selfies, according the the BBC. The Fars News Agency, a semi-official organ considered close to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, called it "strange."
📸 سلفی عجیب نماینده مجلس با #موگرینی !
Others took to social media to mock the actions of the men in parliament.
Close enough #موگرینی #تحلیف #مجلس
Others thought it reminded them of a certain movie scene.
لامصب، گفتم اینو من یه جایی قبلاً دیده بودم ها ... #سفیدبرفی #سلفی #مجلس #موگرینی #تحلیف
The BBC reported that one parliament member captured in the photos, Ahmad Mazani, tried to explain the scene by saying his colleagues were not allowed to talk to Mogherini before or during the ceremony.
"Every one of those esteemed MPs in that selfie should be interviewed seriously," a cultural adviser to the president said. An advisor for Iran's former president, Sadegh Kharraz, said parliament members should attend "a training course on codes of conduct and universal moral values," the BBC reported.
Selfie or it didn't happen, as they say.
