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Alireza Akbari a former top defense ministry official executed for "espionage"
Iran's Minister of Tourism and Cultural Heritage, Ezzatollah Zarghami has expressed concern over the execution of British-Iranian national Alireza Akbari.
Akbari, a former high-ranking defense official was accused by the regime of espionage for the United Kingdom.
Zarghami in a tweet on Saturday called for an investigation into Akbari's "change of behavior", saying that "I am worried about the repetition of this process." He did not say that he believes Akbari was innocent, something that would endanger his own security.
He added that "Alireza Akbari's fate was a bitter experience for the establishment" because he had "70 months of service" in the Iran-Iraq war.
Iran announced Akbari’s execution on Saturday, after sentencing the former Iranian deputy defense minister to death for espionage.
Akbari, also served as an advisor to the Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani.
A source close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has provided information to Iran International showing that accusations against Akbari and his death sentence were aimed at weakening Shamkhani’s position in the clerical regime. It seems that President Ebrahim Raisi, Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib and Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi are exerting pressure to remove Shamkhani from the post.
The execution of Akbari was met with a wave of international condemnations, and Britain sanctioned Iran's Prosecutor General Mohammad Jafar Montazeri hours after Akbari’s execution was announced.
Britain called the execution a barbaric act, a sentiment echoed by the United States, France, Germany and Canada.
