Islamofascists rejecting British ambassador on religious grounds. (Can you imagine if the US would not accept a Muslim as an ambassador??):
TEHRAN, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Iran said it was still studying Britain's nominee for a new ambassador to Tehran amid reports of opposition to the candidate in the Islamic republic.
"Iran's foreign ministry does not provide any views on other countries' nominees for ambassadors before completing the necessary reviews," the Iranian embassy in London said in a statement quoted on Friday by Iran's IRNA news agency.
Western diplomats say Iran is holding up accreditation of the veteran British diplomat David Reddaway, reportedly put forward by London to serve as its new ambassador to Tehran.
Reddaway, who served in Iran in the 1970s and again in the 1990s, has reportedly been chosen to replace Nicholas Browne who finished his tenure in December.
Hardline Iranian newspapers have said Reddaway, who is married to an Iranian and fluent in Farsi, has links with British intelligence and is Jewish by origin.
The Iranian and British foreign ministries have refused to provide details on the issue.
Mohammad Javad Larijani, a former member of parliament and conservative leader, suggested on Friday that Iran was opposed to Britain's candidate.
"The British government must send an ambassador whose reputation and background is more in tune with Iran," he said, quoted by IRNA. "I strongly support the position of our foreign ministry and think Britain should heed Iran's views."
Reddaway's possible rejection threatens to undermine improving ties between Tehran and London.
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has visited Iran twice in recent months to secure Iranian help for the U.S.-led campaign against terrorism and to coordinate policies on Afghanistan.
Straw was the first British foreign secretary to travel to Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Reddaway served as the British charge d'affaires from 1990 to 1993, when tension was at its peak between Tehran and London over a 1989 death sentence issued by Iran's late revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini against the British author Salman Rushdie, who was accused of blaspheming Islam.
In 1998, Khatami's government distanced itself from the death sentence, paving the way for an upgrade in ties to the level of ambassador.
12:45 01-11-02 |
