11/27/2009 Press TV
1L F TV
Iran blasts Norway for taking facts wrong over Ebadi
Fri, 27 Nov 2009 10:44:43 GMT
After Norway accused the Tehran government of confiscating the medal of Nobel Peace laureate
Shirin Ebadi, Iran urges Oslo officials to ‘get theirfacts straight before taking sides'.
Ebadi, an Iranian lawyer, had earlier claimed that authorities acting on orders from Tehran's
Revolutionary Court, have taken away her peace prize medal and her Legion of Honor.
She claimed the authorities also seized a ring awarded to her by a German association of
journalists and froze all the bank accounts of her husband and herself.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said Friday that he was “shocked and concerned”
by the move.
“This is the first time a Nobel Peace Prize has been confiscated by national authorities,” claimed
Gahr.
Answering to a reporter's question about the issue on Friday, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman
Ramin Mehman-Parast rejected Ebadi's claims.
“It is most surprising to see Norwegian officials jump to conclusions without respecting international
regulations and taking enough time to see both sides of the matter,” added Mehman-Parast in
response to the claims made by the Norwegian Foreign Minister.
“Much the same as European countries, tax evasion is a crime in Iran and individuals would face
legal penalties should they commit such an act,” added Mehman-Parast.
Mehman-Parast said that if Norwegian officials really cared about human rights, they would have
never abstained from a crucial United Nations vote on Israeli war crimes.
He was referring to the Goldstone Report, a 575-page investigative account headed by Jewish
South African judge Richard Goldstone, which detailed numerous acts of war crimes and human
rights violations committed by Israeli soldiers during their incursion into Gaza last year.
The resolution was put to vote in the UN General Assembly on November 5 and was eventually
endorsed by 114 members.
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