Official claims by Iran that a captured California resident died before execution

DUBAI — An Iranian official claimed on Tuesday that the Iranian German was in custody Jamshid Sharmahd died before Tehran could execute him – in direct contradiction to the country’s earlier announcement that he had been put to death.

Asghar Jahangir’s comment comes after Germany closed all three Iranian consulates in the country over Sharmahd’s death, leaving only the embassy in Berlin open. Germany later disputed Jahangir’s comment.

Meanwhile, even Iranian reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian has voiced his own criticism of Germany’s response to Sharmahd’s death, as tensions remain high between Tehran and the West over its rapidly advancing nuclear program and ongoing wars in the Middle East.

The judiciary’s Mizan news agency quoted Jahangir as saying: “Jamshid Sharmahd was sentenced to death, his sentence was ready to be executed, but he died before the sentence was executed.”

He didn’t work it out. Jahangir’s comments were made to the state-affiliated Quds newspaper after a weekly news conference, where journalists typically pressure the spokesman to answer questions he did not answer from the podium.

The German Foreign Ministry said in response to the official’s comment: “His death was confirmed to us by the Iranian side.”

“Jamshid Sharmahd was kidnapped by Iran and held for years without fair trial, in inhumane conditions and without necessary medical care,” the ministry said. “Iran is responsible for his death.”

Germany added that it was “lobbying the Iranian government to hand over his body to his family.”

The State Department in the US, where Sharmahd once lived, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Jason Poblete, a lawyer representing Sharmahd’s family, told the Associated Press that the contradictory comments from Iran were “very concerning.”

“This inconsistency raises serious questions about the circumstances of the death and the transparency of the Iranian system,” Poblete said. “The family has urged German and American authorities to investigate this case to determine the truth, ensure thorough accountability and reunite Jimmy with his family in California.”

Iran had said it executed Sharmahd on October 28. He was 69.

Iran accused Sharmahd, who lived in Glendora, of planning an attack on a mosque in 2008 that killed 14 people – including five women and a child – and injured more than 200 others, and of plotting other attacks through Iran’s little-known Kingdom Assembly. and its Tondar militant wing.

Iran also accused Sharmahd of “disclosing classified information” about Iranian paramilitary Revolutionary Guard missile sites during a 2017 television program.

His family disputed the charges and had worked for years to have him released. Germany, the US and international rights groups have dismissed Sharmahd’s trial as a sham. Amnesty International said the proceedings against Sharmahd had been an “extremely unfair process” as he had been denied access to an independent lawyer and “the right to defend himself”.

However, Amnesty also noted that Sharmahd operated a website for the Kingdom Assembly of Iran and its militant wing of Tondar, which included claims of “responsibility for explosions in Iran”, although he repeatedly denied involvement in the attacks.

Sharmahd was apparently kidnapped during a layover in Dubai in 2020. His family received their last message from him on July 28, 2020.

It is unclear how the kidnapping occurred, but tracking data showed that Sharmahd’s cellphone traveled south from Dubai to the city of Al Ain and crossed the border into Oman on July 29. On July 30, tracking data showed the phone traveling to the Omani port city of Sohar, where the signal stopped.

Two days later, Iran announced it had captured Sharmahd in a “complex operation.” The Ministry of Intelligence published a photo of him blindfolded.

In the time since his execution, Germany closed its consulates. It is a diplomatic tool that Germany rarely uses and signals a major deterioration in relations with Tehran.

However, Iran has responded by criticizing Germany and the West, including Pezeshkian, who campaigned on the promise of lifting sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

“If someone who has slaughtered dozens is executed, they say you are not respecting human rights,” Pezeshkian said.

Gambrell writes for the Associated Press. Associated Press writer Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin contributed to this report.