Iran has condemned the sentencing of Iranian-American Mansour Arbabsiar to 25 years in prison as “ridiculous and fabricated,” saying the decision is in line with Washington’s Iranophobia project.
On Friday, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyyed Abbas Araqchi expressed regret over the prison sentence imposed by a New York court over allegations of Arbabsiar’s role in a plot to kill the Saudi ambassador to the United States, ISNA reported.
“By issuing such a verdict, the independence of the US judiciary system was once more warped in favor of political purposes,” Araqchi stated
The foreign ministry spokesman also said Arbabsiar’s detention conditions were inhumane, hence any confession made by the accused lacks any judicial credibility.

US District Judge John Keenan passed the sentence in Manhattan Federal Court on Thursday. Arbabsiar’s lawyer had sought a 10-year term, saying the 58-year-old is suffering from a mental disorder.

He was arrested at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on September 29, 2011 on charges of planning to assassinate Saudi Ambassador Adel al-Jubeir in a bomb attack at a restaurant in Washington.

Arbabsiar was arraigned and appeared before the federal court on October 24 2011, entering a not guilty plea.

In a letter addressed to an English-speaking news channel in 2011, Arbabsiar’s family noted that the Iranian-American was held incommunicado and in poor health conditions.

The US claims that Arbabsiar has links with Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps. But Iranian authorities have strongly rejected the allegation, saying Washington has failed to substantiate its claims with any proof.

By Press TV

 

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