The BBC announced on Monday that it is resorting to the United Nations to protect journalists working for its Persian news service in Iran in wake of “persecution and harassment” against them by Iranian authorities, which have increased in 2017. "The BBC is taking the unprecedented step of appealing to the UN because our own attempts to persuade the Iranian authorities to end their harassment have been completely ignored," BBC director general Tony Hall said in a statement. "In fact, during the past nine years, the collective punishment of BBC Persian Service journalists and their families has worsened." "This is not just about the BBC –- we are not the only media organization to have been harassed or forced to compromise when dealing with Iran," he added. In December, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said that he had discussed this issue in Tehran with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif. The BBC said its Persian satellite television service journalists in London and their families in Iran have been "systematically targeted" since it launched in 2009.