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Iran bans 15 people from travelling over Zarif leak, official resigns
FILE PHOTO: Iran s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon August 14, 2020. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo reuters tickers
This content was published on April 29, 2021 - 16:42
April 29, 2021 - 16:42
By Parisa Hafezi
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran imposed travel bans on 15 people for alleged involvement in a leaked audio recording in which the foreign minister complains about the influence of the Revolutionary Guards on Iranian diplomacy, a semi-official news agency said on Thursday.
In the leaked interview, aired by the London-based Iran International Persian-language satellite news channel late on Sunday, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said he had zero influence over Iran’s foreign policy.
In this February 23, 2021 file photo, Iran s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif addresses a conference in Tehran, Iran. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has replaced the head of a think tank that recorded an interview with the country’s foreign minister after it leaked out this week, providing a rare glimpse into the theocracy’s power struggles and setting off a firestorm in Iran.
In the recording of the conversation held in March 2020 between Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Saeed Leylaz, an economist at the Strategic Studies Center, the think tank associated with Iran’s presidency, Zarif offered a blunt appraisal of Iranian diplomacy and his constricted role in the Islamic Republic. Zarif also criticized the power of Qassem Soleimani, the late IRGC general killed in a US drone strike in Baghdad.
Tens of thousands of people are celebrating the Lag B’Omer holiday at Mount Meron, in the largest public gathering in Israel since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Due to the large crowds, police say they are unable to enforce coronavirus restrictions at Mount Meron, according to Channel 12 news.
Some 200,000 people are expected to visit the northern Galilee site over the coming day, with health officials worried the festivities could lead to mass contagion.
The Magen David Adom ambulance service says it has treated 52 people at Mount Meron during the day, including eight who were taken to Ziv Medical Center in nearby Safed for further treatment.