Hamid Nouri: Ask the Iranian government why prisoners were executed

Hamid Nouri, accused of participating in the summer 2018 massacre, claimed in his fourth defense session that political prisoners were executed due to “armed operations.” In contradictory statements, he called the killing of leftist prisoners in Gohardasht prison a “fabrication.”

Hamid Nouri's fourth defense hearing at the Stockholm court was held on Monday, as he confirmed the execution of Mujahideen and leftist prisoners in 1988, but also made new claims about the reasons for it. He said the Mujahideen were "massacred" in military clashes with the Islamic Republic's forces, and the leftist prisoners were executed for "crimes against the Iranian people."

In justifying the killings, he mentioned the prisoners' intention to "revolt" and said that he informed his superiors about what he had heard in this regard: "A number of people had planned a rebellion in the prison and wanted to kill the IRGC if the MEK attack was successful."

A similar claim has been made by some security and intelligence officials of the Islamic Republic in previous years in justifying the executions of the summer of 2018.

In response to the prosecutor who asked his opinion about the execution of leftist groups in Karaj's Gohardasht Prison, he claimed that "the entire story was fabricated" and said: "There was neither a first wave nor a second wave..."

According to available evidence and the testimony of the prisoners, the first wave of executions in the summer of 1988 began on August 28, with the hanging of Mujahid prisoners. In the second wave, starting on September 25, leftist prisoners were taken to the death row and executed.

Nouri asked the court to inquire from the Iranian government about the reason and date of the executions, and how many people were executed.

Ladan Bazargan, the sister of Bijan Bazargan, one of the execution victims, wrote in a tweet: "The Islamic regime of Iran and Hamid Nouri are heartbroken that even though they did not give us families written proof of the arrest and execution of our loved ones, nor graves or wills, and even wrote on their death certificates: "Natural death". Now we have been able to prove that the 1967 massacre happened. Now Nouri is whining, "Inquire about Iran."

In response to the question of what happened to the communist prisoners, Nouri said: "There were a number of communists who were executed in prisons, a number of people who were released from prisons and died for whatever reason or disappeared, or were killed in a conflict while leaving Iran, and a number of these people do not exist outside Iran. Iran should be investigated about the deaths of these people to find out whether these people are dead or not, whether they had parents or not, and if they were executed, why they were executed."

While acknowledging the execution of leftists, he called the hanging of Tudeh Party members a “break in the army” and an “attempted coup,” and said: “Groups such as the Minority Fedayeen Organization, the Union of Communists, and the Tudeh Party were involved in military activity or armed operations… In short, members and individuals of communist groups have also been executed, not because of political ideas or group affiliation, but because of armed operations.”

In his defense sessions, Nouri sometimes jumps forward and projects, and sometimes gives sarcastic answers in response to questions from the prosecutor and the presiding judge. In the fourth defense session, he reiterated that he was not present during the executions because his daughter was born, and when the prosecutor asked him when he returned to Evin, he said: "Not exactly, but I think it was autumn. I remember it because of the rain. Mrs. Martina, Evin Prison is a very beautiful place. It is full of trees and the leaves of the trees were lying on the ground. It was the end of September and October..."

Hamid Nouri is 60 years old and the Stockholm court has charged him with “gross violations of international law” and “premeditated murder.” Former political prisoners have confirmed his identity as the assistant prosecutor of Gohardasht Prison in Karaj and one of those involved in the execution of prisoners in the summer of 1988. If convicted, he faces the maximum penalty, which is life imprisonment under Swedish law.

The trial of the Nouri case is of historical importance, as the killing of political prisoners in 1988 has been mentioned in reports by human rights organizations for years, but no defendant has been tried in this connection.

Nouri was arrested during a trip to Sweden. He denies the accusation of participating in the 1988 massacres and claims that he was on leave in August and September of this year due to the birth of his child.

Swedish judicial authorities have said the Stockholm trial will continue until April 14, 2022.

Source: DW