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Iranian Lawmaker Wants US Accountability for Wikileaks


Iranian Parliament Speaker, Ali Larijani (file photo)
Iranian Parliament Speaker, Ali Larijani (file photo)

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani says the United States should be held accountable for Wikileaks publications.

In a Saturday news conference, he said U.S. diplomacy is mixed with "some non-diplomatic activities, including espionage." He said the U.S. should explain the actions of its diplomats who are mentioned in the website publications. He also said other countries should be held accountable, but did not specify the countries.

In November, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the WikiLeaks release of more than a quarter-million sensitive U.S. diplomatic cables. She said the U.S. was taking aggressive steps to hold responsible those who had stolen the information.

Larijani also commented on Iran's nuclear program, calling it a matter of the country's national interests and rights.

In similar remarks on Tuesday, Iranian chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili said Tehran was not willing to bargain over its nuclear rights in talks this January in Turkey with six world powers.

Separately, Iran's U.N. envoy has urged Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to condemn November attacks that killed one prominent Iranian nuclear scientist and injured a second scientist.

Mohammad Khazaei submitted a letter to Mr. Ban and other top U.N. officials Friday. He said "certain quarters" who had spared no efforts in "depriving" Iran of its rights to peaceful nuclear energy were behind the attacks.

Iranian officials have previously blamed the U.S., Israel and Britain for the incidents.

Israel has declined to comment on the Iranian allegations. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the U.S. decries "acts of terrorism, wherever they occur."

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