A legal complaint was filed on Monday, December 11, demanding the arrest of the Iranian regime President Ebrahim Raisi during a planned trip to Switzerland to attend a UN refugee conference. The complaint states that Raisi should be detained upon his arrival in Switzerland this week and charged with crimes against humanity for his involvement in the mass execution of opponents in the late 1980s.
The complaint calls on Andreas Müller, the Swiss Federal public Prosecutor, to ensure that Ebrahim Raisi is arrested and brought to trial for his participation in “acts of genocide, torture, extrajudicial executions, and other crimes against humanity.”
Raisi was scheduled to travel to Switzerland to attend the Global Refugee Forum of the United Nations, which begins on Wednesday in Geneva. He reportedly canceled his trip and regime foreign minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian will be heading the Iranian delegation in his stead.
The complaint was filed by three individuals who were victims of the Iranian regime’s suppression of opponents in the 1980s.
Alongside this legal complaint, an international campaign is also underway expressing outrage at Raisi’s participation in the United Nations Refugee Forum and demanding his prosecution.
The campaign states, “Raisi was the main perpetrator of the massacre of thousands of political prisoners in 1988. His presence at the United Nations contradicts the fundamental values of this organization.”
Human rights groups have long been advocating for justice regarding the alleged unlawful executions of thousands of young individuals in the summer of 1988, most of whom were supporters of the Mujahedin-e Khalq organization (PMOI/MEK).
The complainants who raised the complaint on Monday state that they can identify Ebrahim Raisi as a member of the “Death Committee,” responsible for the execution of thousands of imprisoned opponents during the summer of 1988.
The complaint alleges that Raisi, who was working as the Deputy Prosecutor General of Tehran at the time, showed a particular enthusiasm for condemning prisoners to execution, distinguishing him from others.
The main plaintiff in the complaint in Switzerland is Reza Shemirani, a survivor of the 1988 purge. According to the AFP news agency, Raisi had asked him which group he belonged to, and when he mentioned the PMOI, he was certain that his death sentence was final.
The complaint states that Shemirani still does not know how he managed to survive the execution, as he was among less than 150 individuals out of around 5,000 prisoners who escaped death.
Two other claimants, Razieh Ghodraty and Ali (Bijan) Zolfaghari, were also imprisoned in Iran in 1988 and identify Raisi as a member of the “Death committee.”
In addition to the legal complaint, an international campaign is underway expressing outrage at Raisi’s participation in the United Nations Refugee Forum and demanding his legal prosecution.
More than 200 signatures have been collected from high-ranking officials, including Nobel laureates, judges, former ministers, parliamentarians, university professors, and UN human rights experts.
The statement by the signatories asserts that Raisi was the main perpetrator of the mass murder of thousands of political prisoners in 1988.
They strongly believe that his presence at the United Nations contradicts the fundamental values of the organization.
The statement further adds that they firmly believe that the United Nations, as the guardian of human rights and justice, should not jeopardize its credibility by inviting an individual accused of severe human rights violations.
The signatories also express their support for the request for an investigation and prosecution of Ebrahim Raisi under international laws, including by countries with global jurisdiction.
