The United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has urged Iran to halt the planned execution of a UK-Iranian dual citizen who was found guilty of spying.
Alireza Akbari, a former Iranian deputy defence minister who has lived in the UK for more than a decade, was found guilty of spying for MI6 by Iran’s revolutionary courts and could be executed within the coming days.
"Iran must halt the execution of British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari and immediately release him," Cleverly was quoted as saying in a press release.
"This is a politically motivated act by a barbaric regime that has total disregard for human life."
Akbari was arrested more than three years ago, and has been detained in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, where other British-Iranians are held, ever since.
The UK’s Foreign Office was aware of his case for some time, according to The Guardian, but were only asked to intervene in the past 24 hours or so by Akbari’s family, after pursuit of legal and political routes in Iran to secure his freedom proved futile.
"There is no evidence that he was a spy except a confession that was extracted after he was drugged and interrogated for 3,500 hours," his wife Maryam Akbari who is based in London, was quoted as saying by the British newspaper.
"He loves his country, but this is part of a political power game inside Tehran. His only contacts with British officials were those permitted by his official status."
Alireza Akbari was Iran’s deputy defence minister under Muhammad Khatami, who was president of Iran from 1997 to 2005.
His appeal against the death sentence was rejected three months ago. He was placed in solitary confinement two days ago and subject to a four-hour interrogation where he was told he would be put to death this week and that he should confess to his crime.
The Iranian government has recently put four protesters to death, following nationwide demonstrations sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini. The protests are considered to be the biggest challenge to the Iranian government's authority for years.