Thursday, Jun 25, 2015
Manama: A Saudi diplomat in Iran said they were still waiting for the final report by the local authorities on the poisoning of Saudi tourists and the death of four children.
“Three weeks after the tragic incident, the consulate in Mashhad is still waiting for the findings,” Acting Consul in the northern city Abdullah Al Hamrani said.
“The consulate has not engaged any formal procedure against the hotel management since we have yet to receive the conclusions of the Iranian investigation that should include the results of the laboratory analyses. The Saudi consulate does not interfere in the probe conducted by the official agencies and which will be based on the reports of the hospital and the public prosecutor in Iran. The consulate just wants the results,” he said.
Consulate officials last week met lawyers to discuss the case from all aspects and assess options, he added.
“The families of the four victims have given the consulate a power of attorney regarding the case and the financial compensations,” he said.
Iranian authorities this month arrested five people over the death of the four young Saudi visitors from poisoning at a hotel.
The four dead, three babies and a 14-year-old girl, were among a group of 33 Saudis who on June 7 inhaled the chemical substance in the hotel in the northern city of Mashhad where they were staying. The city is home to the mausoleum of Ali Mousa Reza, the eighth imam for most Shiites.
“Hotel managers have been questioned and five people have been arrested after the Saudi visitors were poisoned,” Gulam Hussain Mohseni Ejei, an Iranian Judiciary spokesman, was quoted by local media as saying.
The Saudis were poisoned by vapour from a substance used as pesticide in the hotel, Rassoul Dinarvand, the head of the Iranian Food and Medicine Organisation, reportedly said.
He did not name the substance, but said the organisation had banned the use of such substances in hotels.
The police launched an investigation to assess whether the fatal use of the substance was deliberate.
The hotel was shut down and guests were transferred to another hotel.
A source close to the family of the victims said the chemical poison infiltrated the hotel rooms through the air-conditioning ducts.
The poisoning killed Haidar Ali Qasim, Hussain Ali Al Awami, and siblings Hassan Abdul Gani Al Fakher and Deema Abdul Gani Al Fakher.
Iran on June 10 offered condolences to the families of the four Saudis after Saudi Arabia summoned the Iranian ambassador over the incident and called for Iranian authorities to “quickly carry out investigation procedures” into the incident.
By Habib Toumi Bureau Chief
Gulf News 2015. All rights reserved.
