Unrest in Iran Caused by US in Order to Disrupt JCPOA Talks, Army Commander Says

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The riots in Iran were part of the United States' plan to disrupt negotiations on the restoration of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the army commander Maj. Gen. Seyyed Abdolrahim Mousavi said on Monday.

"The recent unrest in Iran was part of US efforts to disrupt the negotiations in Vienna [on the JCPOA]," Mousavi was quoted as saying by Iranian state media.

Earlier in the day, Iran's special services intercepted a cargo with money and intelligence equipment from Saudi Arabia, which was intended for rioters, Mousavi added.

Mass riots began in Iran in mid-September in connection with the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who fell into a coma and died in hospital several days after being detained by Iran’s morality police for allegedly wearing her headscarf improperly. According to a probe conducted for Iran’s parliament, Amini was not subjected to any bodily harm. Iran’s Legal Medical Organization also stated that the young woman's death was caused by cerebral hypoxia which resulted in hypotension and multiple organ failure. Iranian authorities have accused the United States and Israel, among others, of fomenting the unrest.

On September 2, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said that Tehran sent a "constructive" response to Washington's proposals on the revival of the JCPOA, while a State Department spokesperson confirmed to Sputnik that the US received Tehran's response but it is "not constructive."

The nuclear deal was sealed in 2015 by China, France, Germany, Iran, Russia, the UK, and the US, as well as the EU. The US unilaterally withdrew in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on Iran, to which the latter responded by gradually dropping its own obligations under the deal. The two started talks on JCPOA revival after the change of power in the White House.