Egypt detains Iranian diplomat for spying

May 29, 2011, 8:17 GMT

Cairo - Egypt has detained a member of the Iranian diplomatic mission in Cairo, with the suspect currently under investigation for spying for a foreign country, the state-owned al-Ahram daily reported on Sunday.

Sayed Kassem al-Hosseini was recently detained for gathering political, economic and military information on Egypt and some Gulf countries, the paper said.

His arrest could threaten the potential improvement in relations between the two countries, following the ouster of former president Hosny Mubarak and his government in February.

Diplomatic ties between Iran and Egypt have been severed since Egypt provided refuge to the exiled Iranian leader Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, following his ouster by the Islamic revolution in 1979.

Over the decades, relations remained troubled, with Egypt accusing Iran of interfering in the affairs of Arab countries, and Iran accusing Egypt of supporting Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil el-Araby recently met his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi in Indonesia, and said that they discussed the possibility of an exchange of ambassadors.

But he also said 'this is not the right time' for it to take place, given Egypt's transitional phase.

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