Iran prosecutor objects to nuclear negotiator acquittal, report says

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Teheran's chief prosecutor has objected to a court's acquittal of a former nuclear negotiator accused by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of spying, and moved for a retrial in the case, a government-owned daily reported Thursday. Chief Prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi claimed the verdict was unlawful and sent the case for more investigation to one of his subordinates, the Iran newspaper said. The development - clearly backing the hard-line president - was the latest surrounding negotiator Hossein Mousavian, who has become the centerpiece in an evolving tug-of-war between Ahmadinejad and his more liberal political rivals. It also followed Wednesday's announcement by Intelligence Minister Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi that the Iranian secret service would object to the verdict and would call for a new probe into the case.