A topless activist staged a mock hanging from a bridge in Paris, to protest against the visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. The protester, from international women's rights group Femen, hung from the bridge in an execution-style demonstration on 28 January.

She had an Iranian flag painted on her chest. Rouhani is in the French capital to sign off on new business deals between the two countries.

Femen France's spokesperson Sarah Constantin said: "We organised this public display as a little reminder of the fact that every year, more than 800 people are sentenced to death in his country. Among them are women, feminists, homosexuals, and free-thinkers who are rotting on death row, just because they are free-thinkers. And Francois Hollande doesn't take any of this into account.

"It shows that Francois Hollande doesn't care about human rights. The only thing he cares about is business. Shame on Francois Hollande. Shame on Rouhani".

The feminist activist hung from the Debilly footbridge under a sign reading "Welcome Rohani, executioner of freedom". The Iranian president is finalising a deal to buy around 100 Airbuses from France, with further deals on health, agriculture and the environment expected to be negotiated as well.

The visit comes after economic sanctions to Iran were lifted in 2015. Rouhani is also expected to deliver a speech to French business leaders before leaving the country and continuing his tour of Europe.

Femen has taken part in high profile protests in Paris before, including storming the stage of a Muslim conference in the French capital in September 2015.

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