Pars Today

The release of Assadollah Assadi, an Iranian diplomat detained in Belgium on false terror-related charges, was a victory for Iranians, says a senior official.

Mohammad Jamshidi, President's Deputy Chief of Staff for Political Affairs, said in a post on Twitter on Friday that the President of the Islamic Republic had asserted that the first step for “engagement” is the release of the diplomat.

Assadi arrived in Iran on Friday. He was released after five years following an Omani-brokered deal.

Earlier in the day, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian tweeted that the "innocent" diplomat who was "illegally detained in Germany and Belgium for more than two years against international law" was freed after Muscat mediated a deal between Iran and Belgium to swap prisoners.

Iran released Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele, who was arrested on a visit to Iran in February 2022 and sentenced in January to 40 years in prison and 74 lashes on charges including espionage.

In his tweet, Jamshidi said, "As Belgian officials used extreme language in parliament & media, on the phone they spoke of major engagement."

Iran’s top human rights official also on Friday described Assadi's detention in a Twitter post as "illegal".

Assadi's release is the "outcome of efforts by responsible authorities to defend the rights of their fellow citizens abroad," said Kazem Gharibabadi, secretary of Iran's High Council for Human Rights, promising to continue such efforts.

SS