Iran Calls Back Its Ambassador from Kenya

Following the ruling of the Kenyan Supreme Court regarding the continued detention of two Iranians accused of 'terrorism', the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced that it has summoned the Kenyan ambassador in Tehran and recalled its ambassador in Nairobi for consultations. Bahram Qasemi, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, stated on Sunday, March 17, that the director general for Africa in this ministry summoned Raqieh Subo, the Kenyan ambassador in Tehran, to convey the Islamic Republic's protest regarding the new court ruling about Ahmad Abolfathi and Mansour Mousavi. Qasemi also mentioned that during the summoning of the Kenyan ambassador, it was communicated to her that Iran had recalled its ambassador in Nairobi for consultations. While the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated that the reason for recalling the Islamic Republic's ambassador in Nairobi was 'for consultations', Kenyan media reported three weeks ago that the 'criminal unit of the police' had begun investigations into the allegations against Hadi Farajvand, the Islamic Republic's ambassador in Nairobi. According to these media reports, it is suspected that the Iranian ambassador attempted to use bribery and contacts with officials to immediately extricate the two Iranian suspects during their temporary release from Kenya. The detention of the two Iranians in Kenya, who are said to be members of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, occurred about seven years ago and has been a subject of controversy since then. Mansour Mousavi and Ahmad Abolfathi Mohammad were arrested in 2012 by the Kenyan anti-terrorism police and were initially sentenced to life imprisonment for attempting to commit terrorist crimes, but this sentence was later reduced to 15 years in prison. According to the Kenyan prosecutor's statements in court sessions, these two individuals, who had traveled to Kenya on tourist visas, had visited a golf course at least twice during their trip to Mombasa, the second-largest city in the country, where 15 kilograms of hidden explosive material were discovered. Ahmad Abolfathi Mohammad and Mansour Mousavi's lawyer, Ahmad Nasir Abdollahi, stated that they were at the golf course by accident. After the two prisoners protested their 15-year sentence, the appeals court ruled in their favor in May of this year, overturning previous judgments and ordering their release. However, the Kenyan government, prosecution, and police strongly protested this ruling, and after the two were re-arrested, the matter was referred to the Supreme Court of the country. The possible efforts of the Islamic Republic's ambassador to 'smuggle' the mentioned suspects during their short-term release have been noted. Nevertheless, Bahram Qasemi, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, stated that 'non-judicial interventions' by the Kenyan police prevented the return of these two individuals to Iran. The Kenyan Supreme Court, in its latest ruling, has ordered that these two must remain in prison until a final ruling is issued. In addition to this case, in December 2016, two Iranian citizens named Nasrollah Ebrahimi and Abdolhossein Safaei were arrested while 'filming the Israeli embassy while riding in an Iranian embassy vehicle' and were subsequently expelled from Kenya. However, Iranian officials introduced the two as 'official lawyers and university professors.'