Iran offers information on death of Jamshid Sharmahd, German-Iranian citizen

 

Admin I Tuesday, Nov. 06, 2024

 

BERLIN  – The Iranian judiciary has given a new explanation for the death of German-Iranian citizen Jamshid Sharmahd, saying that he was not executed but died before his death sentence was carried out.

“Jamshid Sharmahd was sentenced to death and the sentence was set to be carried out, but he died before the sentence was carried out,” said judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir, according to a report by the judicial portal Misan.

The spokesman did not provide any further details on Sharmahd’s death last week, which has provoked a strong reaction from Berlin.

Germany announced the closure of all Iranian consulates-general, and the affected officials have been ordered to leave the country. Tense diplomatic relations have reached a new low in the wake of his death.

Misan is the official news agency of the Iranian judiciary, and announced Sharmahd’s execution on Monday last week. It is not clear why the account of Sharmahd’s death has changed over a week later.

No details have been released about the whereabouts of his body. The Foreign Office in Berlin said that “his death has been confirmed to us by the Iranian side. We are appealing to the Iranian government to hand over the body to the family.”

Sharmahd was sentenced to death in spring 2023 on terrorism charges. The German government, relatives and human rights activists vehemently rejected the accusations against him.