Iran’s gift to the American presidential candidates: first death penalty against a U.S. citizen in 33 years

Kambiz Shabankare, Geanina Armani

At present, if Iran decides to go through with Amir Hekmati's execution, the American election candidates will be faced with significant difficulties.

Amnesty International issued a statement on Monday saying Iran must not execute a US National sentenced to death, after an unfair trial.

"Like many other detainees in Iran, Amir Hekmati did not receive a fair trial and we question the timing and political circumstances of this decision," said Ann Harrison, Amnesty International's interim Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

Amir Mirzaei Hekmati was detained in August last year. The ex-Marine was accused of spying for the CIA and sentenced to death for "collaboration with a hostile government". His appeal against this conviction and sentence must be lodged within 20 days.

Iran charged Amir Mirzaei Hekmati with receiving special training and serving at U.S. military bases in Iraq and Afghanistan before traveling to Iran on an intelligence mission.

The United States denied the accusations. The State Department called them a "complete fabrication" and White House spokesman Tommy Vietor added that "allegations that Mr. Hekmati either worked for or was sent to Iran by the CIA are false."

Meanwhile, the Iranian government claims that it has undeniable pieces of evidence for the charge of espionage against Amir Mirzaei Hekmati.

Several times, the Iranian government arrested different people, including American citizens and Iranian-Americans, on the charges of spying for the USA, but this is the first death penalty since Iran's revolution 33 years ago. For example, the three American hikers who were arrested at the Iranian border with Iraqi, in August 2009, on the charge of spying, were simply released two years later.

"We know from past experience that the Iranian authorities sometimes rush forward with executions of political prisoners - including dual nationals - at politically sensitive times and we fear that this execution could happen within days or weeks." said Ann Harrison.

It is obvious that Iran has always been tougher to deal with those who have dual citizenship in the case of spying but when it comes to Iranian-Americans, Iran is cautious in issuing severe sentences against these citizens.

However, the current state of affairs shows that Iran changed its policy against the United States. Some experts believe this is a response to increasing pressures from the U.S. against the Iranian government.

Amnesty International said today that amid fears Amir Hekmati could be executed within weeks, showing an intentional threat towards the U.S.

On the other hand, Iran may build stronger barriers for its own security, meantime demonstrating to the world that Iran's security is not penetrable. There is only one meaning to "Iran has a nuclear bomb" which is the development of a defense program against the West.

Ahmadinejad has already said several times that if the U.S. decides for more sanctions against Iran, he will think of more serious comebacks. But most U.S. presidential candidates retorted to public talks about a possible US or Israeli attack against Iran in the present election campaign. This certainly angered the Iranian authorities.

Khamenei's military advisor stated that if Israel attacks Iran, Hamas and the Lebanese Hezbollah will attack Tel Aviv, the capital of Israel, with missiles. Thus, the Iranian president expects the U.S. to understand and count on this death penalty as an example of such response.

It seems that American presidential candidates' involvement in Iran's nuclear program is just a way of getting more votes. But for Iran this is more serious. At present, if Iran decides to go through with Amir Hekmati's execution, the American presidential candidates will be faced with significant difficulties.

Meanwhile, Iran knows that this sentence will turn the world's view to other issues, even if for a while, and at the same time it can turn tables in Iran's favor. This tactic has been used repeatedly by the Iranian government over the years. The obvious example was Sakineh Mohammadi's stoning which deflected world's attention from the Iranian nuclear issue.

The card that Iran has put on the table today for the American candidates will probably lead to a win-win situation for Iran. If U.S. officials are not able to save Amir Hekmati, this will put a strain on future elections for both the Republicans and Democrats. However, if they succeed in saving him, based on experience, surely the Iranian government will demand in exchange a considerable amount of money or the release a prominent prisoner in America.