French and UK embassy staff seek Iran’s mercy

A French woman and two Iranian employees of the British and French embassies in Tehran charged with acting against Iran's national security pleaded for clemency from the clerical leadership on Saturday, the Fars and IRNA news agencies reported.

"I should not have taken part in illegal protests (over Iran's June presidential vote)...I regret my activities and I apologize to the Iranian nation and the court. I hope they will pardon me," Fars quoted French citizen Clotilde Reiss as saying in the court.

Confessions

Nazak Afshar, an Iranian working for the French embassy, was also charged with "providing information over the vote unrest to foreigners."

"We were not authorized by the embassy to go to rallies but we were told to shelter protesters if necessary," Afshar said.

The British embassy employee, Hossein Rassam, was charged with espionage and confessed to handing information about the unrest to Washington and called for clemency from the court, IRNA said.

"Hossein Rassam expressed regret over his past activities and mistakes and the clear violations he had committed (since the June presidential vote). He apologized to the Iranian nation and asked the court for forgiveness," IRNA said.

Rassam was shown on television sitting among other defendants in a courtroom.

French citizen Reiss, held in Tehran's Evin Prison, was arrested at a Tehran airport on July 1 on charges of espionage as she tried to leave Iran after spending five months in the central city of Isfahan.

Television showed Reiss, wearing a black Islamic outfit and headscarf, sitting in the front row in the courtroom. It was not clear whether she had a translator when the indictment was read.

I regret my activities and I apologize to the Iranian nation and the court. I hope they will pardon me

French citizen Clotilde Reiss

British, French reaction

British Foreign Minister David Miliband condemned Iran's espionage trial of Rassam saying the charges were unjustified and brought discredit to Iran.

"We have reaffirmed our solidarity in the face of this latest Iranian provocation," Miliband said.

The British Foreign Office in London described the trial of the Iranian staffer at it embassy to be "completely unacceptable."

"This is completely unacceptable and directly contradicts assurances we have repeatedly been given by senior Iranian officials," said a spokeswoman for the British Foreign Office.

"We deplore these trials and the so-called confessions of prisoners who have been denied their basic human rights," she added.

France has rejected the charge against Reiss as "baseless" and French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for her immediate release.

The French Foreign Ministry said on Saturday it had no comment on Reiss for now. It said the local embassy staff member, only identified as Afshar, was detained in mid-July.

Iran put dozens of moderates and theFrench citizen on trial on Saturday for taking part in unrest after a disputed June presidential vote, and riot police used force to break up protests by relatives outside the courtroom.

"Relatives of the defendants and a large group of people gathered in front of the court building on Saturday. When they chanted 'Allahu Akbar' (God is greatest), the riot police attacked them to disperse the crowd," the reformist Mosharekat website said.

This is completely unacceptable and directly contradicts assurances we have repeatedly been given by senior Iranian officials

A spokeswoman for the British Foreign Office

2nd round of mass trial

The court cases marked the second round of a mass trial of moderates aimed at uprooting the opposition and ending street protests that erupted after the June 12 election which officials say was the "healthiest" vote since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

"The charges include trying to weaken the position of Velayat-el-Faqih (religious jurisprudence) in Iran (and)...challenging the system's legitimacy," the mass indictment said, according to state television.

The defendants are also charged with "attempting to carry out a velvet revolution...(and) having close contacts with foreign embassies and media," it said.

Leading moderates say the election was rigged in favor of hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the resulting dispute has plunged Iran into its biggest internal crisis in 30 years.

At least 26 people were killed and hundreds arrested in the unrest.

Among those on trial are a 24-year-old French language teaching assistant, an Iranian-French local woman employed at the French embassy and an Iranian working for the British embassy.

Also on trial were prominent journalist Ahmad Zeydabadi and leading moderate politicians Ali Tajernia and Hedayat Aghaaie.

This is completely unacceptable and directly contradicts assurances we have repeatedly been given by senior Iranian officials

British Foreign Office spokeswoman

"Show trials"

Espionage and acting against national security are punishable by death under Iran's Islamic law.

At a mass trial last Saturday more than 100 reformists, including several prominent figures, were charged with offences that included acting against national security by fomenting post-election unrest.

Leading moderates, including defeated candidates Mir Hussein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi, have defied Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has formally endorsed Ahmadinejad.

They say the new government Ahmadinejad will appoint will be illegitimate.

Pro-reform politicians have denounced the court cases as "show trials," saying the confessions were made under duress.

Iran accuses the West, particularly the United States and Britain, of fomenting trouble after the June election in an attempt to topple the clerical establishment. They denied the charge.

The latest indictment accused Washington and London of "providing financial help to Iran's opposition" to fuel domestic turmoil.

"Defendant Reza Rafi'i Foroushani had contacts with American intelligence agents in Dubai...Some European ambassadors and diplomats also attended illegal (pro-Mousavi) rallies," it said.

Ahmadinejad was sworn in as Iran's president on Wednesday in a ceremony boycotted by reformist leaders and parliamentarians.

United States President Barack Obama and the leaders of France, Britain, Italy and Germany have all decided not to congratulate Ahmadinejad on his re-election. Ahmadinejad reacted angrily, saying: "no one in Iran is waiting for your messages."

We deplore these trials and the so-called confessions of prisoners who have been denied their basic human rights

British Foreign Office spokeswoman