Iran to take Sweden to ICJ over unlawful verdict against Hamid Nouri: MP

The chairwoman of the Human Rights Committee at the Iranian parliament says the country will file a complaint with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Sweden's judiciary for illegally prosecuting and handing life imprisonment to former official Hamid Nouri.

Zohreh Elahian made the remarks on Sunday, a few days after the Stockholm Court of Appeals upheld a life sentence for Nouri, who was arrested in 2019 under unfounded allegations of human rights violations.

“By this ruling, the Swedish judicial system showed that it is strongly influenced by the propaganda of the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) terrorist group and that it issued a life sentence based on the cult’s baseless complaint,” she said.

“Nouri’s family reserves the right not to recognize the verdict issued by the Swedish National Court due to its non-compliance with legal standards, to lodge a complaint with international conventions, and to pursue the case at the ICJ.”

The Hague-based ICJ is the top UN court dealing with disputes between states. Its rulings are binding, though the ICJ has no power to enforce them.

The Iranian lawmaker also noted that Nouri’s 50-month incarceration in solitary confinement based on the false testimonies of MKO terrorists in a “show and pre-planned trial” exposes Sweden’s “lies” about being one of the world’s freest countries.

The Swedish government and judicial system deprived Nouri as a prisoner of his most basic right to choose a lawyer and did not grant a visa to witnesses called by public defenders, Elahian added.

The court’s last-minute permission also made it impossible for witnesses to appear in the court via video link.

She further condemned the Swedish government for subjecting immigrants to illegal pressure and unfair discrimination and preventing their voices from being heard in the media.

Iran condemns Swedish verdict against Nouri as ‘fundamentally unacceptable’

Iran’s Foreign Ministry vehemently condemns as “fundamentally unacceptable” a Swedish court’s verdict against Hamid Nouri.

Nouri was arrested upon arrival at Stockholm Airport in November 2019 and was immediately imprisoned.

The former Iranian judiciary official was put on trial on unfounded allegations staged against him by elements representing the MKO terrorist group that has openly boasted about carrying out terrorist operations against Iranian officials and civilians perceived to be supporters of the government.

The terrorist group had falsely claimed that Nouri was involved in the execution and torture of MKO members in 1988, baseless charges he has vehemently rejected.

Last July, a Swedish court sentenced Nouri to life imprisonment.

The court, which was described by Iran as illegitimate in the first place, convicted Nouri of “war crimes and crimes against humanity” entirely based on claims made by MKO terrorists living in exile across Europe.

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