TEHRAN — Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani has announced readiness to set up court branches dealing particularly with environmental matters in capital cities of provinces nationwide, the Tasnim news agency reported.

Larijani made the remarks in a meeting with Masoumeh Ebtekar, chief of the Department of Environment, on Tuesday.

Given the current status of the environment in Iran and the fact that the environmental issues are beyond the responsibilities of one specific branch or organization, all three branches of the government should cooperate to resolve the problems, he noted.

“Protecting the environment is a collective responsibility and the department of environment acts as a coordinator between all the branches and organizations,” Larijani stated.

He added that it is essential to form training, cultural and executive working groups thereby ensuring the implementation and effectiveness of the environmental objectives.

Ebtekar, for her part, mentioned the environmental policies outlined by the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which impose a grave responsibility on the three branches, noting that cooperation among the branches paves the way for achieving the stated goals.

She thanked the judiciary branch for its prominent role in protecting the environment and urged the judiciary branch to regard environmental damages as a violation of the law and asked for setting out rules for any transgression.

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