A Swiss citizen detained by Iran on spying charges dies in prison Spy news

The embassy in Tehran is seeking clarification on how an unidentified prisoner died after judicial media reported he committed suicide.

Switzerland confirmed the death of one of its citizens who was imprisoned on charges of espionage in the Iranian province of Semnan.

The Associated Press news agency reported that Pierre-Alain Alchinger, spokesman for the Swiss Federal Foreign Ministry, confirmed the death on Thursday. He said that the Swiss embassy in Tehran is in contact with local authorities to clarify the circumstances of the incident.

Semnan Prison is located about 180 kilometers (112 miles) east of the Iranian capital, Tehran.

Mizan News Agency, affiliated with the Iranian judiciary, reported that the man, whose identity was not revealed, asked his cellmate to bring him food and then killed himself while he was alone.

Mizan website quoted Muhammad Sadiq Akbari, head of the governorate’s Ministry of Justice, as saying, “Efforts to rescue him failed.”

Switzerland plays an important mediating role between Washington and Tehran, representing US interests in Iran since the US embassy seizure and hostage crisis in 1979.

Detention of foreigners

In recent years, Iranian security forces have arrested dozens of foreigners and dual nationals, most of them on espionage and security-related charges.

Human rights groups accused Iran of trying to extract concessions from other countries through such arrests. Iran strongly denies this.

Italian journalist on Wednesday cecilia hall, A reporter for the daily newspaper Il Foglio has been released by Iranian authorities after three weeks in prison and he has returned home.

Sala was in the country on a regular press visa when she was arrested in Tehran last month on charges of “violating the laws of the Islamic Republic.”

Iran denied speculation that her arrest was linked to the arrest in Rome of an Iranian businessman whom the United States accuses of involvement in an attack on its army.