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Iranian military commander accuses BBC of election interference

Xinhua, February 22, 2016 Adjust font size:

A senior Iranian military commander on Monday warned the BBC against interfering in the country's upcoming elections, urging the Iranian Foreign Ministry to react properly, Tasnim news agency reported.

Brig. Gen. Masoud Jazayeri, deputy chief of staff of Iran's Armed Forces, was responding to alleged recent attempts by the BBC to persuade Iranians not to vote for certain candidates running for the Assembly of Experts elections slated for Feb. 26.

Jazayeri criticized the Iranian diplomatic establishment's "inaction" on the matter, according to the report.

"The Foreign Ministry's silence on the British interference in our country's internal affairs raises doubts," Jazayeri said, urging the ministry to show "decisive and proportional" reaction to the British government and its embassy in Iran because of what he described as BBC's "brazen interference" in the country's domestic issues.

"People of Iran expect the administration to take action in this regard and silence the voice of the devil," he said.

Iran's Assembly of Experts is a deliberative body of Islamic theologians or Mujtahids, elected for eight-year terms, and charged with electing and removing the supreme leader of Iran and supervising his activities.

On Saturday, Hassan Firouzabadi, chief of staff of Iranian Armed Forces, also talked about "extremely disgusting and despicable" U.S. and British interference in the upcoming elections, according to Tehran Times daily.

Firouzabadi also urged the country's foreign policy officials to formally object to the U.S. and Britain.

"The intervention is an aggressive strategy pursued by Washington and Britain against the Iranian nation and this should not be downplayed by the country's officials," Firouzabadi said.

Persian-language satellite channels of the U.S.-based Voice of America and BBC are regarded as the voice of the opposition groups by Iranian officials.

The Islamic republic has banned Iranians from establishing any link with these channels. Endit