Iran criticizes U.S. for illegally detaining Iranian woman

Azerbaijan, Baku, Aug. 13 /Trend S.Isayev, T. Jafarov/

Iran has criticized the U.S. for illegally capturing and keeping an Iranian citizen behind bars, PRESS TV reported.

The released Iranian national Shahrzad Mir-Qolikhan, who was in a U.S. prison for five years over unfounded allegations, says she will file a lawsuit with the international courts against the US for her illegal detention.

Mir-Qolikhan made the remarks after her arrival in Tehran from Oman on Sunday night.

Upon her arrival, Iran's Foreign Ministry speaker Ramin Mehmanparast welcomed Mir-Qolikhan back to Iran, and noted that the U.S. continues to violate laws, detaining innocent Iranian citizens.

Mehmanparast said Iran has always condemned such acts, and urged Iranian citizens not to visit the U.S. for those reasons.

Meanwhile, Iran's Ambassador to Oman Hossein Noushabadi said Iran has made complaints at international courts and human rights organizations for the abuse of Mir-Qolikhan's rights and has even submitted a request for redress.

He further noted that the US government and judicial officials jailed Mir-Qolikhan in poor conditions under baseless accusations and subjected her to psychological torture.

On August 7, Mir-Qolikhan arrived in the Omani capital city of Muscat, where she reunited with her twin daughters and her mother after five years in U.S. detention.

Mir-Qolikhan had been arrested in the US in December 2007, after being forced to return to the States from a vacation in Cyprus.

Her former husband, Mahmoud Seif, had been accused of trying to export night-vision goggles to Iran from Austria in violation of US sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

She was detained and sentenced to five years in prison by a Florida federal court in the absence of her husband. Mir-Qolikhan consistently denied any wrongdoing.

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