TEHRAN: Iran’s judiciary and Ali Larijani’s family rejected the Larijani phone tracking claim Thursday. Lawmaker Esmail Kowsari said a call by Larijani’s son exposed his location before a March strike.
Kowsari represents Tehran and sits on the parliament’s national security committee. He said the information he received linked the discovery to a call involving Morteza Larijani.
KhabarOnline reported on August 6 that Kowsari said Morteza called an unidentified person while staying with his father that night.
His published remarks offered no supporting evidence. Iran’s Judiciary Media Centre said the Tehran prosecutor’s case did not support Kowsari’s account.
The centre said prosecutors continue to examine the strike, according to a report carrying its statement. Larijani’s family also called the claim incorrect in a separate statement.
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They said Morteza had not carried a mobile phone for months before the war. He remained without one until the strike, the family said.
They also said responsible agencies had never raised phone tracking as a possible explanation. Morteza discouraged people around him from carrying phones, according to the statement.
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Israel said it killed Larijani in an overnight airstrike in Tehran. Iran’s security council confirmed on March 17 that Ali, Morteza, Alireza Bayat and several guards died.
The judiciary offered no other explanation for how attackers found the site. Officials gave no timetable for completing the Tehran prosecutor’s investigation.