A Swedish court resumed the trial of a former Iranian official, accused of being involved in mass executions and war crimes in the 1980s, according to a fatwa by the Supreme Leader Khomeini.
Hamid Noury, 60, was arrested in November 2019 at Stockholm-Arlanda International Airport during a visit to Sweden. He appeared before the court for the fourth session of the trial, which began last week.
The sessions included a reading of the list of charges dating back to the first and second waves of executions in the 1980s that targeted supporters of the People's Mujahedin (MEK) and other members of political parties.
The Swedish public prosecutor reviewed all written letters between Khomeini and his deputy, Hossein Ali Montazeri.
The Public Prosecution stressed the role of Noury in selecting political prisoners who would appear before the "death commission", according to Radio Farda.
The issues of the 1988 executions resurfaced after the publication of an audio recording detailing the meeting between Montazeri and four officials responsible for the executions, known as the "death commission."
Montazeri criticized the officials for violating the law, warning them that the executions will negatively affect Khomeini's history. He describes the executions as "the biggest crime" committed in the regime, and history will remember its perpetrators among the biggest criminals.
Noury is currently facing thirty complaints by civilian parties who are victims, witnesses, or relatives of victims.
Last week, his legal team challenged all charges, including "war crimes" and "murders" under Sweden's principle of universal jurisdiction.
One of the court witnesses, Lawdan Bazargan, 52, wrote on Twitter, "4th Day of Hamid Noury's court just started. The prosecution is reading from the memoir of Montazeri, a powerful ally of Khomeini, who was against the Massacre and had asked the "Death Commission" to stop the executions."
Bazargan testifies about her brother, who was one of the victims of those executions.
Notably, Iran's new President Ebrahim Raisi was a member of the "death commission."
In early May, more than 150 people, including Nobel laureates, former heads of states and governments, and former UN officials, called for an international investigation into the 1988 executions.
