Iran reacts to prisoner death reports

Tehran has voiced concern over the publication of reports that former Iranian official Ali-Reza Asgari may have died in an Israeli jail.

“The Israeli regime’s abduction of Asgari with the help of the United States and the Israeli regime’s recent claims is a clear and potent example of state terrorism,” said Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad Reza Raouf Sheibani on Tuesday.

Sheibani was referring to Israeli media reports that a detainee had committed suicide while in solitary confinement, retriggering speculations that the unidentified prisoner may have been Asgari, who is a retired Iranian general.

In an article published on the Eurasia Review website, journalist Richard Silverstein cast doubt on the death, saying it may have been murder.

This “only makes their responsibility for his life and health heavier,” Sheibani added.

The top diplomat said such acts indicate the “criminal and inhumane” nature of Israel, and called on international organizations to establish the fate of Asgari, a former Iranian deputy interior minister.

Israel has conducted similar criminal acts in the past, namely the kidnapping of four Iranian diplomats in Lebanon, who were later moved to prisons in the occupied territories, the deputy foreign minister added.

Three decades after their abduction, he said, Tel Aviv still refuses to offer information on their fate.

He also urged the international community to probe the case of the four diplomats.

He held Israel responsible for the safety of the Iranian diplomats.