Member of Parliament: Dari Isfahani has accepted espionage charges

In the ongoing controversy surrounding espionage allegations against a member of Iran's nuclear negotiation team, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament announced that the charge of 'espionage' has been communicated to Abdolrasoul Dari Isfahani. According to Hajar Chenarani, a member of the commission, in an interview with the Basij News Agency on Wednesday, September 1, the member of Iran's nuclear negotiation team has also 'accepted' the allegations. Ms. Chenarani added that Dari Isfahani is currently free on 'bail' due to 'a series of reasons' and under 'special conditions'. This parliamentarian further stated that 'all factors' in this matter are 'under control'. According to this member of the National Security Commission, investigations into Dari Isfahani's actions and their impact on 'internal threats' are ongoing. According to Ms. Hajar Chenarani, security officials of the Islamic Republic have realized that some individuals inside are connected with 'foreign threat' agents and have reached Mr. Dari Isfahani through this connection. The issue of Abdolrasoul Dari Isfahani's arrest and release has recently turned into a political and media controversy in Iran, and government officials and institutions have also denied the allegations against him. Among them, Hamid Baidi-Nejad, an Iranian diplomat and head of the expert group of Iran's nuclear negotiation team, on Wednesday, in a comprehensive defense of Dari Isfahani, stated that he was summoned by certain security authorities for some explanations and was released without any specific charges being proven against him. Mr. Baidi-Nejad also added that Dari Isfahani has denied the charge of 'espionage' and based on credible information, he does not even hold dual citizenship. This Islamic Republic diplomat described labeling Mr. Dari as a spy as an 'insult' to Iran's security apparatus. So far, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, has not commented on this controversial case, and his deputy, Abbas Araghchi, has requested that responsible institutions be accountable in this regard without confirming or denying the news of Mr. Dari's arrest and legal case. Abdolrasoul Dari Isfahani is currently a non-executive member of the board of Asia Insurance and an advisor to Valiollah Seif, the head of Iran's Central Bank. On September 1, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesperson for the judiciary, mentioned that an individual was arrested as an 'infiltrator in Iran's nuclear negotiation team' without naming him, but 'this charge has not yet been proven against him.' Meanwhile, some news agencies and conservative websites have reported that another reason for Abdolrasoul Dari Isfahani's arrest was 'receiving salaries from American and British institutions in exchange for providing important financial and economic information about the Islamic Republic.'