Honorable Rik Daems
President of the Parliamentary Assembly
Council of Europe, Avenue de l’Europe
F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France
January 25, 2021
Dear President,
We, the undersigned write to express our grave concerns on the situation of human rights in Iran. For four decades, the Iranian regime has been brutally oppressing its people and while they have been indiscriminate in stripping citizens of their every individual and social rights, women, youth and minorities have faced the most oppression.
In December 2020, the United Nations General Assembly condemned Iran for its gross violations of human rights for the 67th time. The European Union itself and human rights organisations like Amnesty International have continuously condemned Iran’s human rights abuses over the years.
We are also deeply concerned over the continued use of torture and ongoing execution of young protesters who took to the streets in the November 2019 protests calling for freedom in Iran.
The domestic policy of repression and exporting terrorism and fundamentalism abroad have been the foundation of Iran’s survival strategy for decades, with the latter having been supported by Iran’s embassies in Europe.
On July 1, 2018, German police arrested Assadollah Assadi, a diplomat working at the Iranian embassy in
Vienna, in a joint operation between police, the judiciary and security services from Germany, France, and Belgium. Investigations revealed that as a senior Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) agent, Assadi had plotted an attack on the annual gathering of Iran’s organised opposition, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) in Villepinte, Paris, attended by 100,000 people according to press reports. He wanted to implement this plan together with three other Ministry of Intelligence agents who had received asylum and later granted citizenship in Belgium (Amir Saadouni, his wife, Nasimeh Naami and Mehrdad Arefani). While Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the NCRI’s president-elect was the target of the attack, the event was attended by international political figures, parliamentary delegations and personalities from Europe and around the world. If successful, it would have been the largest terrorist attack on European soil and essentially a massacre.
The Belgian National Security Service (VSSE) reported in February 2020 that, “The plans for the attack were developed in the name of Iran at the request of its leadership. Assadi didn’t initiate the plans himself.” The VSSE emphasized that Assadollah Assadi is an MOIS officer working under the diplomatic cover of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Vienna (Austria).
In another report, the VSSE stated that Assadi carried the explosive device on a commercial flight from Iran to Austria. He handed over the explosives to Amir Saadouni and Nasimeh Naami two days before the attack was to be carried out.
This undeniable evidence calls for a review of policy toward Iran in all areas. Europe must hold Javad Zarif accountable for his diplomat’s terrorist act.
The Iranian regime seeks to blackmail Western countries by using dual nationals as pawns in exchange for its terrorists in foreign jails.
While condemning any policy of appeasement and concessions to the Iranian regime, we call for serious and effective measures, including:
- To condition any economic and trade relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran contingent on the improvement of the human rights situation in Iran and an end to the regime’s terrorism on European soil.
- In accordance with a statement by the Council of the European Union dated April 29, 1997, agents and mercenaries of Iran’s intelligence services with diplomatic, journalistic, and economic cover should be tried, punished, and expelled, and centers with a religious or cultural cover promoting terrorism and fundamentalism should be closed. Granting asylum and citizenship to MOIS agents and mercenaries should be a red line.
We thank you in advance for considering our letter and look forward to hearing from you on this critical matter.
Yours sincerely,
Sophie AUCONIE, Member of Parliament – France
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Petra BAYR, Member of Parliament – Austria
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Margreet de Boer, Member of Senate – Netherlands
Member of Committee on the Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights at PACE
Member of Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights and Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons at PACE
Karin BROUWERS, Member of Senate – Belgium
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Maurizio BUCCARELLA, Member of Senate – Italy
Member of Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights at PACE
Klotilda BUSHKA, Member of Parliament – Albania
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Member of Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Laura CASTEL FORT, Member of Senate – Spain
Member of the Equality and non-Discrimination Committee at PACE
Constantinos EFSTATHIOU, Member of Parliament – Cyprus
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Iván ESPINOSA DE LOS MONTEROS, Member of Parliament – Spain Member of the national delegation at PACE
Bernard FOURNIER, Member of Senate – France
Member of Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) at PACE
Sir Roger GALE, Member of House of Commons – United Kingdom
Vice-President of the PACE
Chairperson of national delegation at PACE
Róisín GARVEY, Member of Senate – Ireland
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Full Member of Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination (since 15/09/2020)
Eglantina GJERMENI, Member of Parliament – Albania
Chairperson of Sub-Committee on Gender Equality
Jean-Pierre GRIN, Member of the National Council – Switzerland
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Yves HEMEDINGER, Member of Parliament – France
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Emer HIGGINS, Member of Parliament – Ireland
Member of Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights (since 15/09/2020)
Christoph HOFFMANN, Member of Parliament – Germany
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Maria JUFEREVA-SKURATOVSKI, Member of Parliament – Estonia
Chairperson of the national delegation at PACE
Christian KLINGER, Member of Senate – France
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Saša MAGAZINOVIĆ, Member of Parliament – Bosnia and Herzegovina
Vice-Chairperson of Socialists, Democrats and Greens Group since 27/01/2020
Javier MAROTO, Member of Senate – Spain
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Giuseppe Maria MORGANTI, Member of Parliament – San Marino Member of the national delegation at PACE
Barbara NOWACKA, Member of Parliament – Poland
Member of Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination at PACE Member of Sub-Committee on the Rights of Minorities at PACE Fiona O’LOUGHLIN, Member of Senate – Ireland
Chairperson of national delegation at PACE
Joseph O’REILLY, Member of Senate – Ireland
Vice-Chairperson of Group of the European People’s Party since 11/10/2018
Ria OOMEN-RUIJTEN, Member of Senate – Netherlands
VICE-Chairperson of national delegation at PACE
Ian PAISLEY, Member of House of Commons – United Kingdom
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Thomas PRINGLE, Member of Parliament – Ireland
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Luís Leite Ramos, Member of Parliament – Portugal
Vice-Chair of Social Democratic Group at Portuguese Parliament and EPP Group at PACE
Chair of Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development of PACE
Roberto RAMPI, Member of Senate – Italy
Secretary of the national delegation at PACE
Frédéric REISS, Member of Parliament – France
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Ingjerd Schou, Member of Parliament – Norway
Chairperson of national delegation at PACE
Vice-Chairperson of Group of the European People’s Party since 08/02/2018
Chairperson of Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs Fifth Vice President of the Storting
Tadeja ŠUŠTAR, Member of Parliament – Slovenia
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Bob van PAREREN, Member of Senate – Netherlands Substitute member at PACE
Egidijus VAREIKIS, Member of Parliament – Lithuania
Vice-President of the PACE from 27/01/2020 to 24/01/2021
Vice-Chairperson of Group of the European People’s Party from 11/10/2018 to 24/01/2021
Martin VICKERS, Member of House of Commons – United Kingdom
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Anna ZÁBORSKÁ, Member of Parliament – Slovakia
Chairperson of national delegation at PACE
Miroslav ŽIAK, Member of Parliament – Slovakia
Member of the national delegation at PACE
Emanuelis ZINGERIS, Member of Parliament – Lithuania
Chairperson of national delegation at PACE
Second Vice-Chairperson of the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights
C.C: Honorable Charles Michel, President of the European Council
Honorable Josep Borrell Fontelles, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/VicePresident of EU Commission