Iranian student held at Russia airport due to misunderstanding: Iranian envoy

TEHRAN, Dec.18 (MNA) – Iranian ambassador to Moscow said that Russian customs officers’ decision to temporarily hold an Iranian dental student at one of Moscow’s main airports was the result of a misunderstanding. According to Reuters, Russia’s customs service said on Friday it had seized radioactive sodium-22, an isotope that is used in medical equipment but has no weapons use, from the luggage of an Iranian passenger planning to fly from Moscow to Tehran. The material triggered an alarm in the airport’s radiation control system and a luggage search led to the discovery of 18 pieces of the radioactive metal packed in individual steel casings, the report claimed. “Over a month ago, a dental student in Moscow, (before) flying to Iran, was (found) in possession of a material related to his work, which caused a misunderstanding for customs officials. Later, it turned out that it was not a special case, and the student continued his trip,” Ambassador Reza Sajjadi said. He also stated that Western media outlets have created a commotion about an event that occurred over a month ago with the aim of tarnishing Iran’s image, undermining the Tehran-Moscow strong relationship, and diverting attention from Iran’s recent success in downing a U.S. spy drone.