Iran executes former minister Alireza Akbari accused of spying for UK

Former deputy defense minister Alireza Akbari was sentenced to death in Iran after being accused of spying for the UK.

The British-Iranian was executed, according to Mizan Online, Iran's judiciary news agency, on Saturday after jeopardizing Iran's security for the British government in return for a salary of €1,805,000, £265,000, and $50,000.

According to the organization, the former defense ministry official constructed shell businesses to thwart Iranian intelligence services after receiving training from the MI-6, a UK foreign intelligence service.

Akbari was charged with having meetings with British intelligence agents in several nations, including England, Spain, Germany, Italy, Austria, Malaysia, and the United Arab Emirates.

He was also alleged to have gathered crucial data on regional, defense, missile, nuclear, and economic concerns relating to sanctions, as well as data on internal and foreign policy, as well as presented it to British intelligence officials in a "well-informed and targeted manner."

The agency went on to say that British citizenship was his "reward" for "betraying" his nation.

Despite Iran blaming Israel for killing prominent nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in 2020, Akbari was claimed to have shared information about the scientist and dozens of other key Iranian officials.

The Iranian judiciary claims that Akbari began cooperating with British intelligence in 2004 and left the nation five years later.

Then, it is claimed that Akbari returned to Iran a number of years later to carry on with his operations before being apprehended.

Days prior to his execution, the state-run IRNA news agency disseminated a video that allegedly contained the former Iranian official's "confessions."

But Akbari had earlier refuted the charges.

The UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, denounced the execution and called it a terrible crime that showed little regard for human rights.

“I am appalled by the execution of British-Iranian citizen Alireza Akbari in Iran,” he tweeted.

“This was a callous and cowardly act, carried out by a barbaric regime with no respect for the human rights of their own people. My thoughts are with Alireza’s friends and family.”