A dual national was sentenced to 10 years in prison in Iran
A Chinese-American dual citizen has been sentenced to 10 years in prison in a lower court on charges of “direct espionage for the United States,” according to a spokesman for the judiciary. The US State Department has called for the immediate release of its citizen.
Judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei confirmed in a press conference on Sunday (July 16) that a person with dual citizenship has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
According to Ejei, the individual was a foreign “infiltrator” and was identified and then arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence. According to a spokesperson for the judiciary, the current verdict was issued in a lower court and the amount of the sentence is subject to appeal.
Ejei did not provide further details about the charges against the individual, but said, “If the verdict is final, my colleagues and I will provide more details about the actions this individual attempted to take.” Ejei did not name the convicted individual.
The judiciary-affiliated Mizan News Agency reported that the individual was a US citizen but was born in China (Beijing). According to the Mizan website, the individual entered Iran “as a senior research student.”
The Mizan website listed the American citizen as “Zi Yu Wang” and stated that he holds dual American and Chinese citizenship. The report states: “Wang has studied in various fields including Eurasia, Islam and nationalism, Russia, Middle Eastern history, and international studies, but his main studies are in the field of Iranology and he is also fluent in Persian.”
According to Iranian judicial sources, this individual was "directly" "guided" by the United States and his task was to "collect documents."
After the news broke, the US government quickly protested the arrest and trial of its citizen on Sunday (July 16). The US State Department said that “the accusation of espionage against this individual is fabricated.” US officials denied sending any “infiltrator” to Iran. The US State Department has called for the release of the citizen.
From "spies" to dual-national managers
According to reports, although the convicted person did not have Iranian citizenship, the Iranian judiciary generally treats dual citizens based on their Iranian citizenship and does not accept the interference of another country. So far, several dual citizens have been sentenced to prison on various charges.
Nazanin Zaghari, an Iranian-British citizen, was also arrested in April 2016 for “violating national security” and then sentenced to 5 years in prison.
Mohammad Bagher and Siamak Namazi (father and son), who hold Iranian and American citizenship, were also sentenced to 10 years in prison each on the charge of "spying for the United States."
Extremist groups in Iran are also strongly opposed to the presence of dual nationals in government affairs. However, according to Article 982 of the Iranian Civil Code, holding positions such as the presidency and his deputies, membership in the Guardian Council and the head of the judiciary, ministries and ministerial and provincial and governorship positions, representation in the parliament, membership in provincial, county and city councils, employment in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, judges, command ranks in the army and the IRGC and the police force, and high security and intelligence positions are prohibited for people with foreign citizenship.
In the dispute between the government and the judiciary over the dual citizenship situation, Mohammad Jafar Montazeri, the country's Attorney General, announced in March 2016 that at least 16 managers had dual citizenship and called for their removal from government jobs.
Montazeri had said, "People who have dual citizenship usually hide the existence of their second citizenship, and it is the duty of the Ministry of Intelligence to uncover this issue through technical investigations."
The Iranian government, however, claims that some managers only reside in a foreign country and are not considered dual citizens in the strict legal sense.
Source: DW
