Sweden-backed terrorist ringleader pleads guilty to crimes against Iranians

The defendant, identified as Habib Farajollah Chaab, ringleader of the Harkat al-Nazal terror outfit, attended the first court hearing into the case in Tehran on Sunday.

“I have acknowledged all of my actions in writing and plead guilty to all of them,” Chaab said.

During the court session, the lawyer representing the survivors of the September 22, 2018 attack that killed at least 25 people, pointed to the defendant's role in various acts of terror and demanded “maximum punishment” for him on behalf of the families of the victims.

“The suspect has used various military hardware, including bombs, grenades, Kalashnikov rifles, etc. to perpetrate his crimes,” he said.

The defendant admitted to being naturalized by Sweden and backed by the country's government, saying he had been provided with a device that would alert Swedish security officials to rescue him whenever he was in danger.

Taking to the podium, the prosecutor’s representative berated Sweden for serving as a safe haven for Chaab as well as members of other anti-Iran terrorist groups such as the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan, also known as PJAK, and the Mujahedin-e-Khalq (MKO) terrorist cult.

“Chaab is this country (Sweden)’s national and is backed by them (the Swedish government),” even though he was on a Red Notice list and was sought by various international bodies.

Back in 2019, Chaab was arrested by the Polish authorities after travelling to Poland to attend a terrorist groups’ gathering, he noted. Influence peddling and intervention on the part of the Swedish government and the United States, however, led to his release.

“He was then turned back to Sweden on a private plane so he could keep up his acts of terror,” said the representative.

The next hearing into the case would be announced in due time, the judge said before ending the court session.