Belgium rejects report jailed Iranian diplomat to be freed in prisoner swap
BRUSSELS (AA) – Belgium has denied a report by Iranian media that a prisoner swap deal has been reached between the two countries.
It had been reported that an agreement to extradite Olivier Vandecasteele, who was sentenced to 40 years in prison by Iran, was reached and included the exchange for Asadollah Assadi, being held in Belgium on terrorism charges.
But Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne denied the report on Wednesday and said it is “not correct” and it came from “a rogue state” aiming to “sow confusion on the hood of an innocent compatriot and his family.”
“This is a very delicate operation. We will continue to do everything we can to get him back to us as soon as possible,” he added in a tweet.
Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib confirmed Wednesday in the federal parliament that Iran had requested Asadi’s transfer.
Asadi was sentenced to 20 years by the Antwerp Court.
Vandecasteele has been held in Iran for eight months on espionage, money laundering and currency smuggling charges and has been sentenced to 40 years in prison.
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