An Iranian secret service agent accused of murdering a Iranian-Canadian photojournalist while in detention for taking pictures of student-led protests has been cleared by a court in Tehran, the lawyer for the victim's family said last night.
Ms Shirin Ebadi, representing the mother of Zahra Kazemi, said the legal proceedings were flawed.
Her family say Ottawa should pursue Iran for justice. Her son said the trial was a "cover-up" to divert attention from the real killer.
"I'm required to work until my last breath to make sure that justice is done to my client," Ms Ebadi said.
She threatened to take the matter to international organisations if the Iranian judiciary fails to carry out justice Kazemi's death. The case has severely damaged relations between Tehran and Ottawa.
"I'll protest this verdict. If the appeals court and other legal stages fail to heed our objections, we will use all domestic and international facilities to meet the legal rights of my client," an angry Ms Ebadi said.
Kazemi, a Canadian freelance journalist of Iranian origin, died on July 10th, last year while in detention for taking photographs outside a Tehran prison during student-led protests against the ruling theocracy.
Iranian authorities initially said Kazemi died of a stroke but a presidential committee later found she died of a fractured skull and brain haemorrhage.
Secret agent Mohammad Reza Aghdam Ahmadi, a counterespionage expert charged by the judiciary with the "semi-premeditated murder" of Ms Kazemi, pleaded innocent.
After three court sessions, the hard-line judiciary abruptly concluded the trial last Sunday, prompting Ms Ebadi and her team to walk out of the court building in protest.
Ebadi, who leads a four-member legal team, accused the court of deliberately failing to carry out justice.
"If the court had summoned the people we named during the trial for explanation, it could have accurately identified the people who committed the murder," she said.