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Four Iranians Face Trial Before Belgian Judiciary

Belgian police special forces patrol after an area of the Forest commune that had been closed by them in Brussels, Belgium February 22, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman
Belgian police special forces patrol after an area of the Forest commune that had been closed by them in Brussels, Belgium February 22, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman
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Four Iranians Face Trial Before Belgian Judiciary

Belgian police special forces patrol after an area of the Forest commune that had been closed by them in Brussels, Belgium February 22, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman
Belgian police special forces patrol after an area of the Forest commune that had been closed by them in Brussels, Belgium February 22, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman

This November will witness the trial of an Iranian group charged with planning an attack on a rally of the Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) at the end of June in Villepinte.

The meeting was attended by some 25,000 individuals including international prominent figures.

The rally was also attended by leading US figures, including President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, and other close allies of Trump.

Assadolah Assadi is the central figure in this case. This 49-year-old man was a diplomat in Iraq from 2003 to 2008, before being appointed third secretary at the Iranian embassy in Vienna, in 2014. According to State Security, he mainly acted on behalf of the “Department 312”, a service of the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) which appears on the list of organizations classified as terrorist by the European Union.

During his military training, Assadi was notably introduced to the manufacture of explosives and his main mission was to collect information on Iranian opponents, in liaison with the foreign ministry.

In case the charges were confirmed, the four will be handed over a life-imprisonment sentence.

Assadi was arrested while on holiday in Germany and handed over to Belgium, where two of his suspected accomplices had been arrested with 500 grams (one lb) of TATP, an explosive, as well as a detonation device.

Le Mond reported that Assadi showed no cooperation with the Belgium investigation. Not only that, but he also warned authorities of possible retaliation by unidentified groups in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen if he is found guilty.

Assadollah’s lawyer, Dimitri de Beco, denied his client was making threats.

“It is absolutely not a threat of retaliation and if it’s understood that way it’s a misinterpretation,” he told Reuters. “He will explain the sense of his remarks to the court.”

Jaak Raes, head of the Belgian State Security Service, revealed on Feb. 20 that the terrorist attack wasn’t a personal initiative by Assadi but was pushed by Iran.

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'Exhausted' Frenchman Held in Iran since 2022 Reveals Identity

A person holds a placard which reads as '2 years of wasted life in Iranian prisons, it's enough'. Kiran RIDLEY, Kiran RIDLEY / AFP
A person holds a placard which reads as '2 years of wasted life in Iranian prisons, it's enough'. Kiran RIDLEY, Kiran RIDLEY / AFP
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'Exhausted' Frenchman Held in Iran since 2022 Reveals Identity

A person holds a placard which reads as '2 years of wasted life in Iranian prisons, it's enough'. Kiran RIDLEY, Kiran RIDLEY / AFP
A person holds a placard which reads as '2 years of wasted life in Iranian prisons, it's enough'. Kiran RIDLEY, Kiran RIDLEY / AFP

A Frenchman held in Iran since October 2022 on Monday revealed his identity in an audio message broadcast on a French radio station, saying he was becoming increasingly exhausted over his ordeal.
Olivier Grondeau, 34, had previously only been identified by his first name and French authorities had not released details of his case.
In an audio message aired on France Inter on Monday, Grondeau fully identified himself and warned that he and the other two French detainees held in Iran were "exhausted", AFP reported.
The other two French nationals currently held in Iran are teacher Cecile Kohler and her partner, Jacques Paris, who were detained in May 2022. They are accused of seeking to stir up labor protests, accusations their families have vehemently denied.
"You, who have the power to influence this matter, hear this truth," he said in the audio message, apparently addressing the French authorities.
"Cecile's strength, Jacques' strength, Olivier's strength -- it is all running out," he said. "Your responsibility is called upon to ensure the survival of three human beings," he said.
Grondeau was arrested in Shiraz, in southern Iran, in October 2022, and sentenced to five years in prison for "conspiracy against Iran”, his mother Therese Grondeau told France Inter.
His family rejects the charges, describing Grondeau as a passionate fan of Persian poetry who was travelling to Iran on a tourist visa as part of a world tour.
On Friday, France summoned the Iranian ambassador to protest Tehran's holding of the trio, describing them as "state hostages".
Their "situation is intolerable, with undignified detention conditions that, for some, constitute torture under international law", the French foreign ministry said.
The tensions have come after an Italian journalist, Cecilia Sala, arrested and jailed in Iran since December, was freed and returned to Rome earlier this month.
Her swift release -- in contrast to the prolonged detention of the French nationals -- was the result of "intense work through diplomatic and intelligence channels" by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government, her office said.
Foreign ministries whose nationals have been held by Iran are known to sometimes advise families to keep a low profile and not announce the arrest of their loved ones publicly, in the hope the situation can be resolved behind the scenes.