Iran condemns German officials' 'meddlesome' remarks on ringleader's death sentence

Tehran, April 28 Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani has condemned certain German officials' "meddlesome and tyrannical" remarks about Iran's upholding of the death sentence of the Tondar (Thunder) "terror" group's ringleader.

Kanaani made the remarks on Thursday in response to the calls from a number of German officials for the reversal of the ruling against Tondar group's ringleader Jamshid Sharmahd, who has a dual Iranian-German nationality, Xinhua news agency reported.

In a statement published on the website of Iran's Foreign Ministry, the Spokesman said such statements and positions by those German officials not only amount to attempting to obstruct serving justice, but also "encourage terrorists and promote terrorism" across the world.

He emphasised that Iran does not seek permission from anybody in its efforts to combat terrorism and deliver justice to terrorists, calling on the German government to remain committed to the principles of sovereign equality and mutual respect and refrain from demonstrating any "impulsive" behaviour.

On Wednesday, Iran's Supreme Court upheld Sharmahd's death sentence issued in February for his planning and directing of "acts of terror" in the country.

According to the Supreme Court's ruling, in the bill of appeal, the appellant failed to provide any reason or evidence for the reversal of the ruling.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock reacted to the ruling in a post on her Twitter page on Wednesday, saying that the confirmation of the death sentence against Sharmahd is "unacceptable".

Baerbock claimed that Sharmahd never had a "fair trial approach," adding, "We call on Iran to reverse this arbitrary judgment immediately."

Sharmahd, 67-years-old, also has US residency. He was arrested in 2020 on allegations of being the leader of "the terrorist Tondar group," Iran's judiciary media outlet Mizan reported in February.

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