Alireza Akbari: Nephew speaks of anguish at execution of British-Iranian national – ‘I do believe it is a political game’
The nephew of a British-Iranian national who was put to death by hanging in Iran has spoken of his shock, describing the execution as a “political game”.
Official Iranian news sources reported on Saturday that Alireza Akbari, the country’s former deputy defence minister, had been executed on charges of spying for Britain, but did not say when the death sentence had been carried out.
Ramin Forghani, a researcher in political science at the University of Luxembourg, told Sky News that he only had good, kind memories of his uncle, and that the execution was a political game which had caused terrible mental anguish to his family.
Mr Forghani said he could not imagine how awful his uncle’s immediate family would be feeling, and remembered how his relatives would meet each other during the Iranian New Year period.
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“He was always smiling,” he said, paying tribute. “He would always try to help anybody as much as he could, family or friends, and that’s the memory that I will continue to have of him.”
Mr Forghani said it had been an “absolutely terrible” time for the family. “I can only imagine that it has been a horrific time for my uncle’s immediate family, his wife and children,” he added.
Mr Akbari, 61, had served as a minister in the reformist government of Mohammad Khatami between 1997 and 2005, and left the country for Britain in 2008 after being briefly detained and bailed by the Iranians. He was later arrested again in 2019 and accused of espionage for MI6.
Alireza Akbari was Iran’s former deputy defence minister
Mr Forghani said the charges made no sense as his uncle had been involved with the Iranian regime since its foundation, having held senior positions in the government, and that we was dedicated to the country and would not do anything to jeopardise its security.
“I do believe it is a political game,” he said. “It would be [unthinkable] for him to try to do anything in any shape or form to jeopardise the country, nor the regime. I can’t think of his character being somebody that would try to do anything against the country. That’s just not digestible.”
The only plausible explanation, Mr Forghani said, was that his uncle had political enemies who had used the system against him. He said the execution was a violation of human rights and urged that pressure on Iran be kept up, saying no one should forget about other dual nationals imprisoned and awaiting sentencing.
‘A barbaric act’
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was “appalled” by the execution, describing it as “a callous and cowardly act, carried out by a barbaric regime with no respect for the human rights of their own people”.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly described it as a “barbaric act” that “deserves condemnation in the strongest possible terms… and will not stand unchallenged”. He has sanctioned Iran’s prosecutor general, Mohammad Jafar Montazeri.
He subsequently tweeted that the UK would be temporarily recalling its ambassador to Tehran for consultation.
‘Drugged and tortured’
The Iranian judiciary claimed Mr Akbari was a “key spy” for the British government, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.
It said Iranian intelligence unmasked him by feeding him false information, and described him as “one of the most important infiltrators of the country’s sensitive and strategic centres”.
Mr Akbari had claimed he was tortured and given mind-altering drugs and forced to confess to crimes he did not commit.
Donald Trump has agreed to send “top of the line weapons” to NATO to support Ukraine – and threatened Russia with “severe” tariffs if it doesn’t agree to end the war.
Speaking with NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte during a meeting at the White House, the US president said: “We’ve made a deal today where we are going to be sending them weapons, and they’re going to be paying for them.
“This is billions of dollars worth of military equipment which is going to be purchased from the United States, going to NATO, and that’s going to be quickly distributed to the battlefield.”
Pic: Reuters
It comes as Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had a “very good conversation” with Mr Trump late on Monday. He thanked him for the “willingness to support Ukraine and to continue working together to stop the killings”.
Weapons being sent from to Ukraine include surface-to-air Patriot missile systems and batteries, which the country has asked for to defend itself from Russian air strikes.
Mr Trump also said he was “very unhappy” with Russia, and threatened “severe tariffs” of “about 100%” if there isn’t a deal to end the war in Ukraine within 50 days.
The White House added that the US would put “secondary sanctions” on countries that buy oil from Russia if an agreement was not reached.
Mr Zelenskyy previously criticised Vladimir Putin’s “desire to drag [the war] out”, and said Kyiv was “working on major defence agreements with America”.
It comes after weeks of frustration from Mr Trump over Mr Putin’s refusal to agree to an end to the conflict, with the Russian leader telling the US president he would “not back down” from Moscow’s goals in Ukraine at the start of the month.
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Trump threatens Russia with ‘severe’ tariffs’
During the briefing on Monday, Mr Trump said he had held calls with Mr Putin where he would think “that was a nice phone call”, but then “missiles are launched into Kyiv or some other city, and that happens three or four times”.
“I don’t want to say he’s an assassin, but he’s a tough guy,” he added.
Earlier this year, Mr Trump told Mr Zelenskyy “you’re gambling with World War Three” in a fiery White House meeting, and suggested Ukraine started the war against Russia as he sought to negotiate an end to the conflict.
After Mr Trump’s briefing, Russian senator Konstantin Kosachev said on Telegram: “If this is all that Trump had in mind to say about Ukraine today, then all the steam has gone out.”
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Meanwhile, Mr Zelenskyy met with US special envoy Keith Kellogg in Kyiv, where they “discussed the path to peace” by “strengthening Ukraine’s air defence, joint production, and procurement of defence weapons in collaboration with Europe”.
He thanked both the envoy for the visit and Mr Trump “for the important signals of support and the positive decisions for both our countries”.
Donald Trump has agreed to send “top of the line weapons” to NATO to support Ukraine – and threatened Russia with “severe” tariffs if it doesn’t agree to end the war.
Speaking with NATO secretary general Mark Rutte during a meeting at the White House, the US president said: “We’ve made a deal today where we are going to be sending them weapons, and they’re going to be paying for them.
“This is billions of dollars worth of military equipment which is going to be purchased from the United States,” he added, “going to NATO, and that’s going to be quickly distributed to the battlefield.”
Weapons being sent include surface-to-air Patriot missile systems and batteries, which Ukraine has asked for to defend itself from Russian air strikes.
Pic: Reuters
Mr Trump also said he was “very unhappy” with Russia, and threatened “severe tariffs” of “about 100%” if there isn’t a deal to end the war in Ukraine within 50 days.
The White House added that the US would put “secondary sanctions” on countries that buy oil from Russia if an agreement was not reached.
It comes after weeks of frustration from Mr Trump against Vladimir Putin’s refusal to agree to an end to the conflict, with the Russian leader telling the US president he would “not back down” from Moscow’s goals in Ukraine at the start of the month.
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Trump says Putin ‘talks nice and then bombs everybody’
During the briefing on Monday, Mr Trump said he had held calls with Mr Putin where he would think “that was a nice phone call,” but then “missiles are launched into Kyiv or some other city, and that happens three or four times”.
“I don’t want to say he’s an assassin, but he’s a tough guy,” he added.
Earlier this year, Mr Trump told Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy “you’re gambling with World War Three” in a fiery White House meeting, and suggested Ukraine started the war against Russia as he sought to negotiate an end to the conflict.
After Mr Trump’s briefing, Russian senator Konstantin Kosachev said on Telegram: “If this is all that Trump had in mind to say about Ukraine today, then all the steam has gone out.”
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Meanwhile, Mr Zelenskyy met with US special envoy Keith Kellogg in Kyiv, where they “discussed the path to peace” by “strengthening Ukraine’s air defence, joint production, and procurement of defence weapons in collaboration with Europe”.
He thanked both the envoy for the visit and Mr Trump “for the important signals of support and the positive decisions for both our countries”.
At least 30 people have been killed in the Syrian city of Sweida in clashes between local military groups and tribes, according to Syria’s interior ministry.
Officials say initial figures suggest around 100 people have also been injured in the city, where the Druze faith is one of the major religious groups.
The interior ministry said its forces will directly intervene to resolve the conflict, which the Reuters news agency said involved fighting between Druze gunmen and Bedouin Sunni tribes.
It marks the latest episode of sectarian violence in Syria, where fears among minority groups have increased since Islamist-led rebels toppled President Bashar al Assad in December, installing their own government and security forces.
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In March, Sky’s Stuart Ramsay described escalating violence within Syria
The violence reportedly erupted after a wave of kidnappings, including the abduction of a Druze merchant on Friday on the highway linking Damascus to Sweida.
Last April, Sunni militia clashed with armed Druze residents of Jaramana, southeast of Damascus, and fighting later spread to another district near the capital.
But this is the first time the fighting has been reported inside the city of Sweida itself, the provincial capital of the mostly Druze province.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reports the fighting was centred in the Maqwas neighbourhood east of Sweida and villages on the western and northern outskirts of the city.
It adds that Syria’s Ministry of Defence has deployed military convoys to the area.
Western nations, including the US and UK, have been increasingly moving towards normalising relations with Syria.
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UK aims to build relationship with Syria
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Concerns among minority groups have intensified following the killing of hundreds of Alawites in March, in apparent retaliation for an earlier attack carried out by Assad loyalists.
That was the deadliest sectarian flare-up in years in Syria, where a 14-year civil war ended with Assad fleeing to Russia after his government was overthrown by rebel forces.
The city of Sweida is in southern Syria, about 24 miles (38km) north of the border with Jordan.
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