UK welcomes release of embassy staffer in Iran

Britain has welcomed the release-on-bail of a British embassy staffer arrested in Iran over alleged involvement in post-vote unrest in the country.

Iran, blaming the US and certain European countries for fueling the unrest, arrested nine British embassy staffers including Hossein Rassam on June 27 on charges of fomenting the riots that were preceded by the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for another four-year term.

In the post-vote unrest, 20 people were killed and many others were injured.

Iran later released eight staffers but kept Rassam, head of the security and political division of the British Embassy in Tehran, in custody.

On Sunday, Rassam’s lawyer Abdolsamad Khorramshahi told Press TV that he was released on a bail of IRR 1 billion (USD 100,000).

In a statement released by the Foreign Office in London, the British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said that he was ‘very glad’ about the release of Rassam but at the same time insisted that none of the nine staffers had committed any illegal act.

“The detention of embassy staff was completely unjustified: I am confident that none of them were involved in any improper behavior.”

Miliband went on to say that the release of all staffers was an ‘important priority’ for the British government, which he claimed was obtained through ‘intensive discussions’ with Iranian officials including his counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki.

In support of the arrest of the Iranian nationals, Iran’s Intelligence Minister Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i earlier said, “The British Embassy played a crucial role in the recent (post-election) unrest both through its local staff and via media.”