Iranian MP unveils identity of drunk Saudi diplomat

A senior Iranian parliamentarian disclosed that the drunk Saudi diplomat who killed an Iranian national in a car accident in Tehran last month was Yasser bin Mohammad Ali Yami.On March 14, a drunk Saudi Embassy staffer killed an Iranian driver and injured a passer-by in a car accident in Tehran.Member of the parliament's Foreign Policy and National Security Commission Mehdi Davatgari said that the drunk Saudi diplomat was appointed to the consular section of the Saudi Embassy in January 2011.Davatgari said the reason for unveiling the identity of the Saudi diplomat was because he felt obliged to shed light on the death of an Iranian citizen in a fatal car crash last month.The lawmaker noted that the Arab diplomat was driving a vehicle with a diplomatic plate number at more than 130 km per hour in Northern Tehran before ramming into a Pride passenger car which was slowing down to stop. He noted that the Pride jumped nearly 60 meters ahead.He said the level of the alcohol in the Saudi diplomat's blood was 2.87 percent according to the tests conducted at Imam Hussein Hospital three hours after the accident.Davatgari said the diplomat, whose vehicle's insurance had expired, might have been returning from a party.Last month, Rapporteur of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Seyed Hossein Naqavi Hosseini said the drunk Saudi diplomat should be legally punished irrespective of diplomatic immunity.He said the drunk Saudi diplomat should receive his due punishment according to the Iranian law.Naqavi Hosseini said the diplomatic immunity for diplomats does not cover violation of traffic laws, and diplomats will be punished for traffic offenses.He noted that the Saudi diplomat is an offender and must face justice through legal channels as he was driving under the influence.