Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Germany of defending a "terrorist" after the death in Iran of Jamshid Sharmahd, a dual national sentenced to execution, which triggered condemnation from Berlin.
Iran on October 28 announced the execution of Sharmahd, 69, but eight days later the judiciary spokesperson said Sharmahd had died before the "imminent" execution could be carried out, implying natural causes.
After the initial execution announcement, Berlin recalled its ambassador to Iran and closed three Iranian consulates in Germany. That in turn triggered what Iran called a "strong protest" to the German charge d'affaires, who was summoned.
"I regret that this is straining German-Iranian relations, and I wish I could have prevented it," Araghchi said in an interview published Friday by the German weekly Der Spiegel.
"But to do that, the German government would have had to cooperate and communicate that this is a terrorist, instead of defending someone who has trampled all humanitarian standards underfoot," he said, according to Spiegel's English edition published online.
Earlier this week, Germany's Foreign Ministry, reacting to the official's comment about Sharmahd’s passing, said, “His death was confirmed to us by the Iranian side.
“Jamshid Sharmahd was abducted by Iran and held for years without a fair trial, in inhumane conditions and without the necessary medical care," the ministry said. “Iran is responsible for his death."
Germany added it was "lobbying the Iranian government to hand over his body to his family.”
Iran, which does not recognize dual citizenship, announced Sharmahd's arrest after a "complex operation," without specifying when, where or how he was detained.
His family said he was seized by Iranian authorities in 2020 while traveling through the United Arab Emirates.
Iran sentenced Sharmahd to death for his involvement in an April 2008 bombing of a mosque in Shiraz, in the south of the country, which killed 14 people and wounded about 300.
Sharmahd was also accused of leading the Tondar group, which aims to topple the Islamic Republic. Iran classes it as a terrorist organization.
Jamshid Sharmahd's daughter has told AFP that she and her family "do not trust anything" Iran says about the circumstances of her father's death.
"If there is a corpse, he needs to be returned and brought back to us as soon as possible," Gazelle Sharmahd said.
Araghchi told Der Spiegel that, "If his family officially submits a request, we see no obstacles" to returning Jamshid Sharmahd's body.
"The question of whether he was executed or died of natural causes is beside the point," he said.
During the interview, Araghchi also censured what he called the Western "double standards" that he said failed to condemn Israel for its actions in the Gaza Strip, where its war with Hamas has led to tens of thousands of deaths.
"I am not calling Hamas, Hezbollah and others, 'proxies.' I call them freedom movements. Supporting them brings no benefits to Iran," which arms and finances Lebanon's Hezbollah and backs Hamas, Araghchi told the German publication.
