Iran hands death sentence to alleged CIA spyFebruary 4, 2020 - 18:49 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - said on Tuesday, February 4 that its top court had confirmed a death sentence for an Iranian man accused of spying for US intelligence. Amir Rahimpour was found guilty of passing along information about Iran's nuclear program to the CIA, Deutsche Welle reports. Judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said the man would be "executed soon." "Amir Rahimpour, who was a CIA spy and got big pay out and tried to present part of Iran's nuclear information to the American intelligence service, had been tried and sentenced to death and recently the supreme court upheld his sentence and you will see it carried out soon," Esmaili was quoted by the semi-official Fars news agency as saying. Two other alleged spies were given 15-year prison terms. The nationality of thes suspects has not been made public, but Esmaili said they were charity workers. The last alleged US spy to be executed in Iran was Shahram Amiri, who was hung in 2016. Amiri had defected to the US at the height of Washington's efforts to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions. When he returned to Iran in 2010, he received a warm welcome from politicians and was a popular guest on talk shows. He suddenly disappeared before it was confirmed that he was tried and killed for epsionage. Last summer, Iran said it had busted a spy ring of 17 individuals, sentencing some of them to death. However, it has not been confirmed if these executions have been carried out. Tensions between Washington and Tehran are especially high at the moment over the assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, who was long responsible for anti-American efforts in Iraq. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. Armenia, Russia discuss life extension of Metsamor nuclear plant Issues regarding the extension of life of the 2nd power unit of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant were discussed in Yerevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. |