July 4th, 2022
Hon. Alexander De Croo
Prime Minister of Belgium
In 2018, and with the arrest of Assadollah Assadi and his fellow terrorists, for plotting a bomb in the NCRI’s annual meeting that I had the pleasure to attend, many around the world applauded the intelligence cooperation of France, Germany, Belgium, and Luxemburg police and security forces for averting one of the deadliest terrorist operations in Europe’s soil.
In their 2020 sentencing, diplomat Assadollah Assadi, who worked at the Iranian embassy in Vienna, was given a 20-year jail term by the court in Antwerp in Belgium. This was the first time an Iranian official had faced such charges in the EU since Iran’s 1979 revolution. Three others were also convicted.
However, just a few days ago, the world opened its eyes to the unbelievable news that Belgium, the country well-known for its strong stance on human rights and the rule of law, has signed a treaty with Iran, in which Assadollad Assadi and his co-conspirators could be handed to the Iranian regime, and they could continue their prison terms in Iran.
If history could be a teacher, it tells us that since the mullahs’ reign in Iran, in numerous cases, the Iranian government agents who had committed crimes and killings on Europe’s soil were welcomed by high officials, glamourous ceremonies, flowers, and red carpets in Iran. None of them ever spent a minute in prison in Iran.
I join many political activists, human rights organizations, and fellow parliamentarians to ask the Belgian government to withdraw from this treaty and the Belgian parliament to stand with justice and not vote in favour.
This treaty is a very sweet deal for Iran and a dangerous one for Belgium and Europe. The ratification of this treaty will open the doors for more terrorist activities manifested by the regime in Tehran, knowing that the preparatory will be safely handed to Iran.
Sincerely,
Hon. Judy A. Sgro, MP Member of
Parliament Humber River-Black
Creek
