AN Ealing-based asylum seeker who set fire to the Iranian embassy has been spared jail.
Ali Mustapha Rahmi, 21, poured petrol on the doors of the Kensington building and set fire to it after hearing a relative had been executed by the Iranian governmnent.
Rahmi, of Hastings Road, Ealing, was stopped by MOD officers on October 16, in possession of the Kurdish flag and a megaphone, claiming he was demonstrating on behalf of prisoners of war.
But when officers visited his home, they found a petrol canister and trainers doused in fuel.
A 'freedom pass' issued to asylum seekers also revealed he got off at Knighsbridge station just minutes before the incident.
Prosecutor Peter Zinner said although only 'superficial damage' was caused to the embassy doors, the act could have sparked friction between the UK and Iranian Governments.
Mr Zinner said: "What emerges from this incident is that the defendant's intentions was not to cause physical harm to any persons at the scene.
"This was a venting of anger following his history of persecution by the authorities as a result of the hanging of a family member."
Rahmi, who pleaded guilty to the offence in November claimed to have been attacked by Iranian Security forces, losing an eye, fingers from both hands and sustaining a brain injury.
Judge James Wadsworth let him off with a 50 week sentence suspended for two years and said: "What you did was a serious crime.
"I accept the dreadful history of your own experiences in your own country and it is with that and your plea of guilty which save you from immediate imprisonment.
"This was a betrayal of your position and there must be a sentence of imprisonment."
The freedom fighter was also banned from entering Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea and the City of London for two years.
