Brussels disputes the charges as 'fabricated' and says they are potentially in retribution for a lengthy prison term given to an Iranian diplomat in 2021.
abc.net.au/news/iran-sentences-belgian-aid-worker-sparks-response/101842702Iran has sentenced a Belgian aid worker to a lengthy prison term and 74 lashes after convicting him of espionage charges in a closed-door trial, state media reported.Belgium has summoned the Iranian ambassador to explain the detention and charges
The website of Iran's judiciary said a Revolutionary Court sentenced 41-year-old Olivier Vandecasteele to 12.5 years in prison for espionage, 12.5 years for collaboration with hostile governments, and 12.5 years for money laundering.Mr Vandecasteele has denied the charges, which Brussels denounced as fake.
Distraught family of Mr Vandecasteele appealed to the Belgian government to do its utmost to free the aid worker, who was arrested while on a visit to Iran in February of last year. Ms Lahbib condemned Mr Vandecasteele's "arbitrary detention" on Twitter and said Iran's ambassador to Brussels would be summoned in protest at the sentencing."The family is devastated by the news," Olivier Van Steirtegem, who is Mr Vandecasteele's best friend and has been acting as the family's spokesperson, told Reuters.
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