Prince Khalid to Zarif: Iran’s response is denial when caught redhanded

Prince Khalid bin Salman, the Saudi ambassador to US, tweeted on Thursday saying that the Iranian regime as usual is pretending its innocence when caught red handed over its terror activities.

In response to Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif’s tweet, Prince Khalid bin Salman said: “The Iranian regime response when caught redhanded is denial.”

Saudi ambassador continued saying that Iran has a proven history of terror, including a plot to assassinate his predecessor Adel al-Jubeir - now foreign minister - by bombing a Washington restaurant.

Prince Khalid added that Javad Zarif is no moderate but rather an apologist for the Iranian regime’s terror.

Zarif had said that the arrest of a Belgian diplomat in Austria on suspicion of planning a bomb attack in France was a “false flag ploy.”

Iran’s top diplomat tweeted : “How convenient: Just as we embark on a presidential visit to Europe, an alleged Iranian operation and its “plotters” arrested. Iran unequivocally condemns all violence & terror anywhere, and is ready to work with all concerned to uncover what is a sinister false flag ploy.”

Meanwhile, Iranian state TV reported on Thursday that the country’s Foreign Ministry has summoned envoys from France, Germany and Belgium over the case of an Iranian diplomat detained in Germany.

The report says Deputy Foreign Minister Abbass Araghchi held separate meetings with the three diplomats in Tehran to express Iran’s “strong protest” over the detention of Tehran’s Vienna-based envoy, Assadollah Assadi, as reported by the Associated Press.

Assadi was detained on Sunday near the German city of Aschaffenburg on a European arrest warrant for suspected involvement in a plot to bomb a large Iranian opposition conference north of Paris on June 30.

Carsten Sellnow, spokesman for the regional court in Bamberg, Germany, told the Associated Press that Assadi remains in detention awaiting possible extradition.

French officials also detained a 54-year-old Iranian who is to appear in court on July 11 as part of his extradition process to Belgium, which had issued a European arrest warrant. The man identified as Mehrdad A. normally resides in Belgium.

A French diplomatic official said France does not support the ideology or activities of the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (MeK), the exile group that staged the conference. However, he said it is no longer on a European list of terrorist organizations and can conduct activities as long as the public order is not disrupted. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.