© UnknownIranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Araqchi
"To us, he (Arbabsiar) is a US citizen with Iranian origin who has been victim of a plot in which suspicious foreign and Zionist elements are involved," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Araqchi said in Tehran on Tuesday.
He said that there are many doubts and questions on the judicial process in which Arbabsiar was tried in the US, and said, "Anyway, we pursue the developments related to his case closely."
The Iranian government has denied any connection to Manssor Arbabsiar, the man arrested in the alleged plot to assassinate the Saudi envoy to Washington, and derided the claims, saying US officials have offered no proof. Arbabsiar is a 56-year-old naturalized US citizen who also had an Iranian passport.
"This ridiculous scenario was staged by the US authorities since a year ago, while in addition to the denial of all charges by the detained person (Manssor Arbabsiar), some US officials and political analysts also termed it as unreal and similar to Hollywood scenarios," former Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast said in 2012 in reaction to Arbabsiar's alleged confessions in a US court at the time.
The US accusations that Iran aimed to assassinate the Saudi envoy to Washington proved to be nothing more than a baseless plot to damage Iran's face in the international community after American media revealed that the main suspect in the case is a maniac according to federal doctors.
The New York Times and TPM news organization reported in July 2012 that a lawyer for Manssor Arbabsiar, a used car dealer charged with hiring a Mexican drug cartel hitman to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the US, is asking a federal judge to dismiss the charges against him or at least suppress an alleged confession because he has bipolar disorder.
Two defense experts said they diagnosed Arbabsiar with bipolar disorder, with one saying he was "likely cycling in and out of manic episodes" from Sept. 29 to Oct. 10, 2011, when he allegedly confessed role in the plot to FBI agents, the US media reports said.
"His mania may have been further triggered by the time zone change resulting from his travels from Iran to Mexico, lack of sleep, and the psychological stress of his arrest," wrote Dr. Michael B. First.
A person in a manic state, First wrote, would "have significant difficulty comprehending the circumstances surrounding a particular decision or appreciating the consequences of that decision." An individual in a manic state might "display feelings of invincibility and grandiosity" which may cause them to "enter into agreements that they would not otherwise enter into," he wrote.
First wrote that during his interview, Arbabsiar "displayed a particular cognitive style in which he was very tangential, meandering from topic-to-topic, and it was difficult to keep him on track." Arbabsiar's sister described one episode in which the suspect treated airplane stewardesses, the pilot and passengers seated around him "to expensive bottles of perfume from the duty-free cart because he wanted to make everyone feel good," which First said is consistent with a manic episode. He also reportedly struggled with depression and would only leave his bedroom to chain smoke.
Arbabsiar's friends said after he was charged in October 2011 that they did not believe he was capable of pulling off an assassination plot.
US officials charged that the plot was authorized by "elements" of the Iranian military, specially the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC).
Iran denied the accusations, saying that the US has not evidence or proof to substantiate its claims.
It is noteworthy that the US judicial system has started months of hue and cry about the alleged assassination without any proof and only based on the statements of a maniac.
Analysts widely believe that the US hired or blackmailed Arbabsiar to stage a plot against Iran at a time of rising hostilities and they are now setting the stage to release him in order to meet their end of the bargain with Arbabsiar.
"I wouldn't be surprised to hear in the near future that Arbabsiar has died or committed suicide for unknown reasons," political analyst, Ali Behnam, said.
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