Raisi faces a new challenge when Sweden sets a decisive precedent
Raisi faces a new challenge when Sweden sets a decisive precedent
After a marathon trial with over 90 interrogations and 46 witnesses, a Swedish court last week sentenced a former Iranian legal official to life imprisonment for his involvement in the mass execution and torture of tens of thousands of prisoners in Iran in the 1980s.
The court ruling against Hamid Nouri, a 61-year-old former assistant to the deputy prosecutor at the Gohardasht prison in Iran, provoked mixed reactions. The Iranian regime has, predictably, strongly condemned the ruling, while human rights organizations and Iranian opposition figures welcomed it as a victory for those who have been or are still being oppressed in Iran.
Hours after the verdict, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani declared Tehran’s condemnation, saying, “The Islamic Republic of Iran strongly condemns this political statement (which is based on fabricated and baseless allegations against the Islamic Republic and our judicial system.”
Human rights activists and Iranian opposition figures praised the verdict, saying the verdict sets a precedent for trying to prosecute other Iranian officials accused of committing crimes. Some have stated that the ruling serves as a litmus test of the principle of universal jurisdiction. Others have suggested that the Swedish ruling will inspire other countries to act against former Iranian officials living in exile.
These reactions are understandable, as the verdict is a milestone, marking the first time a former Iranian official has been brought to justice for his involvement in the mass executions aimed primarily at members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran.
While other Iranian officials and agents have been convicted in Germany, France and, most recently, Belgium, of murder and terrorism-related plans, no one had ever been prosecuted for crimes committed in Iran, according to legal experts. In addition, the Swedish verdict came at a time when Ebrahim Raisi, one of the four judges who oversaw the executions upheld by the infamous death commission in 1988, is occupying the presidential office in Iran – and is reportedly becoming the country’s next top leader.
The verdict against Nouri was much more than just a court verdict. It showed the families of the victims and reminded the world that justice will ultimately be done to perpetrators of crimes against humanity, no matter how late. It also sent a warning to the Iranian regime that oppressors will one day be subject to justice and will pay the price for their oppression.
The Swedish ruling has also encouraged the families of the victims to hold on to the belief that, despite the fact that three decades have passed since the crime was committed and despite the Iranian regime’s predictable denial of responsibility, they can still use the principle of universal jurisdiction to sue. the perpetrators in courts outside Iran.
While all of this undoubtedly indicates a long-delayed change in the right direction from the Western powers, some European politicians still seem to be willing to follow Iran’s rules, with critics warning that appeasing Iran is more likely to encourage further hostage diplomacy than advise against it from this policy. .
Nouri’s conviction reminds the world that justice will ultimately be served on perpetrators of crimes against humanity, no matter how late.
Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami
Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne and a number of lawmakers are currently supporting a controversial treaty that will allow the replacement of an Iranian diplomat imprisoned in Belgium over a bomber in exchange for a Belgian citizen held by Iran on vague charges of “espionage”.
Tehran is keen to ratify this treaty so that its Belgian hostages are released in exchange for 50-year-old Assadollah Assadi, an attaché at the Iranian embassy in Vienna. Assadi was found guilty of supplying explosives for a planned bomb attack on an Iranian opposition rally in 2018 in France, which was also attended by five British lawmakers.
Although the justice minister did not name the person taken hostage by Tehran in February, Belgian media have identified him as Olivier Vandecasteele, a 44-year-old former aid worker.
The Belgian Treaty, which is currently before Parliament for ratification, has been criticized nationally and abroad for undermining the rule of law in the country. In the United States, Representative Randy Weber, a Republican representing Texas, tweeted that he was “shocked to find out that the Belgian government has signed an agreement with the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and plans to send Iranian terrorists back to Iran to plan.” more terrorist attacks. “
Despite this case, Khamenei’s favorite, Raisi, should be more concerned than any other person in Iran about what the future has to offer. As a senior member of the death committee that oversaw the mass execution of political prisoners, he shares responsibility for sending at least 30,000 innocent people to the gallows without a fair trial.
It is hardly surprising that the Iranian regime has pursued a policy of hostage diplomacy and uses dual citizens as leverage. In May this year, Iran announced plans to execute Iranian-Swedish scientist Ahmad Reza Djalali accused of spying for Israel and helping it kill Iranian nuclear scientists. Djalali had left his home in Sweden in April 2016 to participate in a two-week workshop in Iran at the invitation of the University of Tehran. He was arrested a few days after arrival. After a typically farcical trial that was heavily criticized by human rights organizations, Djalali was sentenced to death by one of Iran’s so-called revolutionary courts a year later.
There are many similar cases involving dual citizens suffering from the terrible consequences of the Iranian regime’s political game with the West. These include 67-year-old German-Iranian activist Nahid Taghavi, who was arrested in Tehran in October 2020 and accused of “apparently belonging to an illegal organization” and spreading “anti-regime propaganda”.
The latest ruling against Nouri in Sweden will probably herald the beginning of a new approach from the Iranian regime. This ruling sends a clear message, warns of further blackmail and reminds Tehran that the Western world can initiate countermeasures against it.
More importantly, the Swedish trial, which ironically began on August 10, 2021, a few days after Raisi took office, was seen by many observers as having harmful consequences for Iran’s last tough president. The trial provided an ideal opportunity to reveal more of the horrific details of the terrible period of the 1980s, which Raisi has always been keen to conceal.
Prior to his election, Raisi was placed on a US sanctions list in 2019. However, as head of state, he is granted nominal immunity from prosecution, which means that he can travel abroad for visits and meetings. According to human rights activists, however, the Swedish verdict could break the vicious circle of impunity granted to Iranian officials accused of human rights violations.
In summary, it seems that Nouri’s verdict hit two birds with one stone. Firstly, it strikes back at Iran’s blackmailing hostage diplomacy and, secondly, it sends a clear message to Raisi that the age of impunity is coming to an end and that justice has no expiry date and no geographical boundaries. We can only hope that other European countries will also act against Iran’s hostage diplomacy.
- Dr. Mohammed Al-Sulami is the President of the International Institute for Iranian Studies (Rasanah). Twitter: @mohalsulami
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