European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso added his voice on Tuesday to the international condemnation of Iran for the decision to sentence a woman to death by stoning, DPA reported.
Referring to the case of Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani, convicted for adultery and accused of involvement in her husband's murder, Barroso said: "This is barbaric beyond words."
"In Europe we condemn such acts, which have no justification under any moral or religious code," Barroso said during a keynote speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, where his words were broken up by applause.
Barroso's criticism the appeals made in Mohammadi-Ashtiani's favour by France, Italy, the Vatican and the EU's foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton.
In the face of international pressure, Iranian authorities have suspended the stoning sentence, but have also denounced what they see as foreign meddling in the internal affairs of their country.