TEHRAN:Iran has dismissed Germany’s meddlesome call to reverse the death sentence of a terror ring leader, saying it will never ask anyone for permission to deliver justice vis-à-vis terrorists.
Iran’s Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the death penalty for Jamshid Sharmahd, ringleader of a US-based terrorist group, after it found “no reason or evidence” to reverse the ruling.
Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock urged Tehran to “immediately” reverse the verdict, calling it “completely unacceptable.”
Responding to that, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani said the Islamic Republic of Iran does not tolerate such a meddlesome approach.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran will never seek permission from anyone in the path of confronting terrorism and implementing justice in dealing with terrorists,” Kan’ani said.
“Iran believes that the meddlesome and authoritarian statements by some German officials about the verdict issued by an Iranian court against a known terrorist is a clear example of supporting terrorism and interfering in Iran’s internal affairs,” he added.
The Iranian spokesman warned that such positions not only hinder the implementation of justice but “encourage terrorists” and “promote terrorism” across the world.
He urged German officials to “immediately end the operation to encourage terrorists and promote the sinister scourge of terrorism.”
Those who claim to be fighting terrorism are expected not to seek to reward the “child-killing terrorists” if they refrain from cooperating with Iran in implementing justice in dealing with terrorists, Kan’ani added.
He said efforts to block the implementation of justice vis-à-vis terrorists are among clear examples of human rights violations, advising the German government to observe the principle of sovereign equality and mutual respect and avoid any emotional attitude in this regard.
Sharmahd, a US resident, was the ringleader of the Tondar (Thunder) terrorist outfit. He was convicted of planning a series of attacks, including a 2008 attack against a religious congregation center in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz, Fars Province, which killed 14 people and wounded hundreds.
Sharmahd and his Tondar group, were also behind a 2010 terrorist bombing at Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s mausoleum in the Iranian capital, which left several people injured.
The 67-year-old was also convicted of working with US intelligence and spying on Iran’s ballistic missile program.
