Posted on 07/24/2003 3:40:06 PM PDT by Shermy
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran accused Canadian police on Thursday of the "criminal" killing of an Iranian, ratcheting up a diplomatic dispute that began with the death in Iranian custody of a Canadian journalist this month.
Iranian state media said Canadian police in Vancouver had attacked three young Iranians, killing one and injuring one of the others. It identified the dead man as Keyvan Tabesh and demanded those responsible be brought to justice.
Iran and Canada are at odds over Zahra Kazemi, 54, a Canadian photojournalist of Iranian descent who died in Tehran after suffering a severe blow to the head while in custody. Canada recalled its envoy to Tehran over the incident and said it would review its ties with Iran.
"Why have Canadian police, who should safeguard the security of the people, committed this disgraceful crime which scared Iranian citizens living in Canada?" Iranian radio quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi as saying.
Iran's state media said the incident happened on Tuesday. But Canadian media say Tabesh, 18, was shot by a policeman in the Port Moody suburb of Vancouver on July 14 after an apparent road-rage incident in which he brandished a machete.
The Canadian government rejected what it said was any attempt to compare the death of Tabesh with that of a journalist who died after being arrested.
"Let's keep our cool here. Let's not fall into sheer hysteria...both sides must refrain from making statements which may complicate matters further," an official told Reuters.
The language used by Iranian officials echoed that of the Canadian government when it demanded Tehran identify and punish those responsible for Kazemi's death.
"Iran wants the Canadian government to give an explicit and transparent and satisfactory explanation about this criminal act and to hand over those responsible for this regrettable event to justice," the radio quoted Asefi as saying.
Kazemi's case has sparked a major political row in Iran, with reformist allies of President Mohammad Khatami (news - web sites) saying it highlighted the operation of shadowy security services outside the government's control.
An initial Iranian inquiry said Kazemi died of a brain hemorrhage but it failed to determine whether the blow to her head was deliberate and who might be responsible. A further investigation has been ordered.
The official IRNA news agency quoted Asefi as saying Canadian media had censored the Vancouver incident. "The strong censorship of this story creates more ambiguities," it quoted him as saying.
Kazemi was buried on Wednesday in Iran against the wishes of her son. Canada, which insisted the body should be returned to Kazemi's home city of Montreal, condemned the burial and said it would withdraw its ambassador.
The journalist died on July 10, more than two weeks after she was arrested for taking pictures outside a prison in Tehran where many political dissidents are held.
(With additional reporting by David Ljunggren in Ottawa)
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Police in the Vancouver suburb of Port Moody, British Columbia, admitted surprise and some dismay on Thursday at finding themselves in the middle of diplomatic storm between Canada and Iran.
Iran accused Canadian police on Thursday of the "criminal" killing of an 18-year-old Iranian immigrant.
Iran and Canada are already at odds over Zahra Kazemi, 54, a Canadian photojournalist of Iranian descent who died in Tehran after suffering a severe blow to the head while in police custody. Canada recalled its envoy to Tehran over the incident and said it would review its ties with Iran.
Port Moody Police Department spokesman Constable Brian Soles said the department is still investigating the July 14 incident in which Iranian immigrant Keyvan Tabesh was shot to death after, according to reports, attacking a police officer while brandishing a machete.
"We're just Port Moody, we're just doing our investigation here. As far as that (Iran's allegations) goes, that's a matter for Ottawa to deal with," Soles said.
Port Moody is a rapidly growing community of about 25,000 people about 10 km (6.5 miles) east of Vancouver. Tabesh lived in Burnaby, British Columbia, another Vancouver suburb.
According to witnesses interviewed by police, the early morning incident began when two women complained that Tabesh had rammed their vehicle with his car, hit the vehicle repeatedly with a machete and then drove off.
Officers spotted Tabesh's car while interviewing the women. A plainclothes officer followed him and and reported he fired several shots after Tabesh got out of his car and ran at him with the machete, police said.
"Everything we have been able to uncover about this kid and his past character and incidents that had concerned him confirm (the original report)," Boles said.
He said witnesses include two youths who were in Tabesh's car, one of whom was wounded in the incident. The incident received widespread coverage in the Vancouver media because police shootings are very rare.
Tabesh's parents, who moved to Canada two years ago, have accused police of illegally shooting their son, who they said carried a weapon because he had been attacked by an unknown individual shortly after arriving in Canada.
Boles said Port Moody is committed to a "transparent and satisfactory" investigation of the shooting, echoing the words used by officials in both Tehran and Ottawa in their diplomatic dispute.
The officer who shot Tabesh, whose name has not been released, is on paid leave pending the completion of the investigation. He is a 25-year veteran of police work and is described as being "traumatized" by what happened.
Now they will know the feeling of Islamic pressure...those basturds
One dead, one wounded after Moody shooting
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Canadians (at least the ones running the government right now) are such wimps. A Canadian journalist was beaten to death for trying to expose violations of human rights. The Iranian regime has the nerve to compare that to the shooting of a machete-wielding creep--and the Canadian gov't doesn't care.
It's ironic when when you think about it.
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