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Iran slams US 'meddlesome' statement on cop-killer case

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi

Iran has slammed the US Department of State's statement about the execution of a man convicted of killing a number of police forces during an unauthorized gathering few months ago, saying the United States is in no place to interfere in the "legal" affairs of independent countries.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi said on Tuesday that the man had had access to a lawyer and was sentenced to death following legal and judicial procedures and after confessing to his crimes.

He emphasized that the death penalty had nothing to do with the convict's personal beliefs.

Mohammad Salas, a member of a Dervish cult, was executed in Iran on Monday over a bus-ramming incident that killed three police officers during protests in February in Tehran’s Pasdaran neighborhood.

The attack came during an unauthorized gathering by the so-called Gonabadi Dervishes near a police station, during which they engaged in clashes with ordinary people and police forces.

Two members of the Basij volunteer force had also lost their lives in the car-ramming and stabbing attacks at the site.

In a Monday statement, the US Department of State condemned Salas's execution and claimed that he has been denied access to a lawyer before and during his trial.

"The application of the death penalty, without affording Mr. Salas the fair trial and appeal guarantees to which he was entitled, is a clear violation to Iran’s international human rights obligations," the statement added.

In reaction to such claims, Qassemi pointed to the US government’s dark record of violating its international commitments and said Washington has withdrawn unilaterally from many international agreements over the past year and is shirking its responsibility and obligations.

He added that the US President Donald Trump's anti-human rights and discriminatory immigration policies have drawn condemnation not only from many countries, international organizations and characters, but also from the closest figures to the White House.

Therefore, the US “is in no position to interfere in and blackwash the internal legal measures of other independent countries," the Iranian spokesperson pointed out.


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