Iran International

A senior Iranian diplomat based at the United Nations’ European headquarters in Geneva has left his post and applied for asylum in Switzerland, diplomatic sources told Iran International, amid mounting political unrest in Iran.

Alireza Jeyrani Hokmabad, a senior official at Iran’s permanent mission to the UN in Geneva, sought asylum together with his family after leaving his workplace, the sources said. He held the rank of counsellor and served as minister plenipotentiary, effectively the deputy head of Iran’s mission to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva.

The sources said Jeyrani decided not to return to Iran out of fear of potential repercussions linked to the ongoing political and social upheaval in the country, as well as concerns over the stability of the Islamic Republic’s governing structure.

Swiss authorities have not publicly commented on the asylum request.

Jeyrani joined Iran’s mission in Geneva in 2017 as an adviser and later rose through the ranks, representing Iran in economic bodies affiliated with the United Nations, including forums dealing with trade, development and investment.

Diplomatic sources said that growing international support for Iranian protesters, including statements by European leaders and the European Parliament, has contributed to rising anxiety among Iranian diplomats stationed in Europe.

Several Iranian diplomats have in recent weeks privately contacted authorities in European countries to explore or submit asylum requests, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.

European sources said several governments are reviewing or have decided to more readily accept asylum requests from Iranian diplomats, even in cases where applicants cannot immediately demonstrate a direct threat to their lives.

Defections by Iranian diplomats during periods of domestic unrest are not unprecedented. Following the 2009 protests known as the Green Movement, several Iranian diplomats in Europe resigned and sought asylum, later citing electoral fraud and violent repression by the authorities.

Among those who defected at the time were Iran’s consul in Norway, Mohammad Reza Heydari; its chargé d’affaires in Finland, Hossein Alizadeh; the consul in Milan, Ahmad Maleki; and an embassy official in Brussels, Assadollah Farzad Farhangian.