Rouhani orders probe into leaked audio 'conspiracy'

TEHRAN: The Iranian government has said that an investigation has been ordered into the "conspiracy" of leaked audio in which Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says the military and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) are too influential in diplomacy.

President Hassan Rouhani ordered the investigation to identify who leaked the "stolen" three-hour-long recording by top diplomat and member of his moderate government Mohammad Javad Zarif, the spokesman said.

The tape, which comes ahead of presidential elections in June, has dominated the discussion in the Islamic republic since its publication by media outlets outside Iran on Sunday.

"We believe this theft of documents is a conspiracy against the government, the system, the integrity of effective domestic institutions, and also against our national interests," government spokesman Ali Rabiei told reporters.

"The president has ordered the intelligence ministry to identify the agents of this conspiracy," he added. The file was "stolen for clear reasons", he said, without elaborating further. (Agencies)

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