Iran: Obama Should Apologize For Downed Drone

Iran Says Obama Should Apologize For Sending Drone

* Tehran rejects U.S. request to return spy plane

* Wants apology for violation of air space

* Washington source says drone on surveillance mission

* Judiciary indicts 15 people for spying for US, Israel

(Adds indictment of spy suspects)

By Hashem Kalantari

TEHRAN, Dec 13 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obamashould apologise for sending an unmanned spy plane into Iranianterritory rather than asking for it back after it was seized,Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Tuesday.

Iran announced on Dec. 4 it had downed the spy plane in theeastern part of the country, near Afghanistan. It has sinceshown the plane on television and said it is close to crackingits technological secrets.

On Monday, Obama told a news conference: "We have asked forit back. We'll see how the Iranians respond." Iranian officialshad already said they would not return the drone.

"It seems that (Obama) has forgotten that our air space wasviolated, a spying operation conducted and international lawtrampled," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told anews conference.

"Instead of an official apology for the offence they havecommitted, he is raising such a demand. America must know thatthe violation of Iran's air space can endanger world peace andsecurity."

Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi told the official IRNA newsagency: "The U.S. spy drone is the property of Islamic Republicof Iran. Tehran will decide what it wants to do in this regard."

AGGRESSOR AMERICA

Parliament issued a resolution calling the drone incursion"evidence of international terrorism and a blatant violation ofinternational law by the aggressor America," and said Iran mightseek reparations from Washington.

Iran has already complained to the U.N. Security Councilabout the incursion, calling for action to "put an end to thesedangerous and unlawful acts".

NATO's International Security Assistance Force inAfghanistan initially said the plane may have been an unarmedU.S. reconnaissance drone that went missing during a missionover western Afghanistan.

But a person familiar with the situation has since toldReuters in Washington that the drone was on a surveillancemission over Iran.

The drone affair is just the latest incident adding totensions between Iran and the West which accuses the IslamicRepublic of trying to develop nuclear weapons, a charge itdenies.

Iran's judiciary announced on Tuesday it hadissued indictments against 15 unidentified people held onsuspicion of spying for the United States and Israel, theofficial IRNA news agency reported.

Iran said in May it had arrested 30 people it said werespying for the United States. Spying in Iran can be punishableby death.

In response to tightened economic sanctions against Iran,radical youths stormed the British embassy in Tehran on Nov. 29,causing London to recall all its staff and close its mission.

Republican presidential candidates in the United States haveupped rhetoric on a possible military strike against Iran,something Israel says it may carry out as a last resort to stopthe Islamic Republic getting the bomb.

"It's better that they don't use phrases like 'all optionsare on the table'," Mehmanparast said, referring to the stockphrase used by Israeli and U.S. leaders about the militaryoption.

"The phrase has been used so often it has become tiresome,"he added. (Additional reporting by Hossein Jaseb; Writing by RobinPomeroy; Editing by Matthew Jones)

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