Kazem Gharibabadi, on Thursday, January 14th, at a conference with the presence of the official and families of the martyrs of Golestan province, while saluting the honorable souls of the martyrs from the beginning of Islam until today, noted: “We must see why after 45 years of the Islamic Revolution, our enemies still commit hostile actions and assassinate the innocent people of our country.”
Emphasizing that all hostilities and terrorist acts against our country go back to the independence and authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Gharibabadi added: “If Iran did not have this independence and authority, we would not have witnessed this onslaught of enmity and hostility against the system and noble people of Iran. Independence and authority have distinct characteristics; the first point is the strong military and defense power of the Islamic Republic. During the imposed war against I.R of Iran, while it faced many problems in providing defense equipment, dozens of countries helped Saddam's regime.
“The extensive progress we have is due to the efforts and blood of martyr Hajj Qassem Soleimani and the martyrs who defended the shrine”, he added.
Gharibabadi continued: “Now Iran has reached a stage where it not only does not need weapons and defense and military equipment from other countries, but is also an exporter of this equipment. The obvious aspect of this power is the high missile capability of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and this cannot be tolerated by our enemies that although Iran is under the most severe attacks, pressures and restrictions, it has reached this level of capability. The second and obvious point is Iran's regional and extra-regional influence, which, of course, does not mean interfering in the internal affairs of other countries.
Gharibabadi noted: “the US and Western countries could not solve the problems and challenges of the region, but when it comes to the Islamic Republic of Iran, it is the solution to the problems in the region. A country that they tried to limit with wide threats, sanctions and terrorist actions, but today it is strategically in the region and even beyond the region”. He added: “With the ingenious leadership and enlightened measures of the Supreme Leader, The enemies of the Islamic Republic of Iran will never reach their goals.”
Calling the third aspect of Iran's authority and independence as “Iran's progress in modern and advanced technologies” he said: “An example is energy and nuclear technology. Almost two decades ago, we joined the very limited group of countries that enrich uranium and produce nuclear fuel, under what conditions? In a situation where the countries did not offer even the slightest help to Iran and they even filed a case against the Islamic Republic of Iran and imposed unilateral sanctions against our country by Security Council Resolutions. However, due to the ingenious leadership and logical, purposeful and enlightened measures of the Supreme Leader, they will never achieve their hostile goals.
Gharibabadi emphasized: “Each of us, according to our responsibilities, has noticed the effects of the Supreme Leader's measures in various domestic, regional and international fields. In the most important domestic and international challenges Iran is facing, the orders and measures of the leadership helped us overcome the problems. His existence is a great blessing that our enemies cannot tolerate. The Islamic Republic of Iran will continue to develop its progress, independence and authority under the guidance of the Supreme Leader.”
We have 23 thousand terror martyrs since the beginning of the revolution
The Secretary-General of the HCHR reminded: “Iran's Islamic Revolution has been and continues to be under threats and hostile actions, from the formation of terrorist and separatist groups to the assassination of innocent people. What is the cause of these actions?” He added: “By assassinating Martyr Soleimani, the enemies thought they would eliminate someone who stood against their sinister plans, but according to the Supreme Leader, Martyr Soleimani is even more dangerous for them than General Soleimani when he was alive.” He continued: “We witnessed terrorist acts on the fourth anniversary of General Soleimani’s martyrdom, and this is because of the fact that the enemies cannot tolerate the interest that the people carry for him and the large presence of his devotees in his fourth anniversary”.
Gharibabadi stated: “We have 23,000 terror martyrs since the beginning of the revolution. Which country has been subjected to such a cowardly attack as 17 thousand people who were martyred by the members of the MKO terrorist group, the imposed war against Iran and support for Saddam's regime, as well as the cruel and extensive sanctions against Iran. Sanctions are definitely very bad, but if it becomes a means to give up the independence and authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran, neither the people nor the officials of the system and the government will accept it.”
The assassination of Martyr Soleimani and his companions is a violation of the principle of use of force and is completely rejected in international law
Emphasizing that the terrorist groups and their supporters will get a strong response from the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Secretary-General of the HCHR noted: “Martyr Soleimani provided many services. He was a virtuous, sincere, kind person and a brave, fearless and outstanding military strategist with correct understanding of regional and international developments, who devoted himself to the extensive defense of the holy shrine of Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) and promotion of Iran's strategic position within and beyond the region. They are just some of the characteristics of this precious martyr.” Ha quoted the Supreme Leader by saying that: “Martyr Soleimani is a school and a path”. Gharibabadi added: “Because of these characteristics, martyr Haj Qasim became beloved of hearts.”
Regarding this criminal act in the view of International Law, the Secretary-General of the HCHR stated: “In international law, we have a word called targeted terror, which is an exception to the principle of the prohibition of use of force, which says if there is an armed conflict between two countries, they can use this tool. The US referred to this exception as a ground for it act of terror, while there was no armed conflict between the two countries. Therefore, this assassination is a violation of the principle of prohibition of use of force and is completely rejected in terms of international law.
After the criminal action of the US, the Iraqi government sent two letters to the Security Council and the Secretary General of the United Nations, condemning this act.
In the same context, referring to the exceptions in the United Nations Charter, Gharibabadi noted: “One of them is self-defense, that is, when a country is attacked by another country, according to Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, until the Security Council takes measures to ensure International peace and security the effected country can resort to legitimate defense. Iran had not attacked the US territory and this argument has been completely rejected.”
Rejecting the other argument of the US about resorting to preemptive defense, i.e. repelling a possible threat, Gharibabadi reiterated: “The US is the creator of preemptive actions and based on this concept, they committed many crimes in other countries. But this has not become a rule in international law, because it creates chaos for any country to commit such crimes at its own discretion and perception.
He continued: “After the criminal act, the government of Iraq sent two letters to the Security Council and the Secretary General of the United Nations, condemning this action. It considered the US to be an intruder on the sovereignty of Iraq. Another issue is the violation of the obligations of the US regime under the 1973 UN Convention, on dealing with crimes against persons who enjoy immunity.
In assassinating Martyr Soleimani, the US has denied the most obvious human right, that is, the right to life
The Secretary-General of the HCHR noted: “Heads of countries and all employees and persons who are assigned to that country and are present on a mission have immunity based on the Convention 1973 of the UN. Martyr Qasem Soleimani had been invited to Iraq at the invitation of the Prime Minister of this country, he was on an official mission in Iraq and had not entered the country secretly. Killing, threatening, injuring, attacking the places and vehicles of these persons and their residential places are considered crimes according to the convention and the member states must deal with these crimes. Iran and the US are members of this convention, and Iran can pursue US crimes, at the international level.”
Referring to human rights, Gharibabadi pointed out: “The right to life is the most obvious human right. Its meaning in international law is that you cannot arbitrarily deprive an individual of their right to life. This principle has been violated by the United States. The UN Special Rapporteur, Ms. Callamard, submitted a report to the Human Rights Council that same year.” He added: “The report considered several aspects of the crime committed by the US. Accordingly, the US action in assassinating Martyr Soleimani is first a violation of the United Nations Charter; second, a violation of the principle of prohibition of use of force; third, a violation of international law and international rules; fourth, it is a completely illegal act; and fifth, the fact that the US made its excuse for assassinating Martyr Soleimani by calling Martyr Soleimani a terrorist, is a completely illegal act and an excuse, which causes the international responsibility of the US regime.”
Three important measures for upholding justice in the case of the assassination of Martyr Soleimani are put on the agenda
In another part of his speech regarding upholding justice, Gharibabadi stated: “Three important measures for the implementation of judicial justice have been put on the agenda. 1) Filing a legal case in the courts of the Islamic Republic of Iran; 2) Filing a legal case by the judicial system of Iraq, because it was the crime scene and martyr Soleimani was their guest; 3) the follow-up at the International Court of Justice using the capacity of the 1973 Convention.”
The Secretary-General of the HCHR continued: “In this case, all the necessary investigations have been done and the necessary documents have been collected. Although Trump himself and some US officials openly confessed to this crime, and the confession is considered one of the most important evidences, we need other documentation, because all the documentation of this crime are supposed to be presented to the international public opinion, and on the other hand, all the people involved in this crime should be recognized in whatever country they are.
The US was not the only one involved in this crime, but the involvement of others and some persons in countries such as Germany and the UK is also discussed. Finally, in May 2023, the indictment was prepared by the Tehran Prosecutor's Office and sent to the Tehran Justice.”
He added: “The two main charges are against the US accused. The first accusation is the terrorist act leading to intentional killing, and the second one is financing terrorism. By the order of the head of the judiciary, a special branch has been formed in the criminal court of Tehran province. This case focuses on the American accused in the first stage.”
The first trial session will be held in early 2024
The Vice-President of the Judiciary for International Affairs continued: “There were 97 accused in this case. Arrest warrants were issued for 73 people and the order of prohibition of prosecution was issued for 23 others. At the top of the 73 American accused, are Trump, Pompeo and General Mackenzie. 19 other accused were also identified in Iraq who were involved in this terrorist crime and the information of these people has been sent to the judicial system of Iraq. Also, judicial representations were sent to six other countries and the case is still open.
Regarding the latest condition of the case of assassination of Martyr Soleimani, Gharibabadi noted: “The first hearing date will be determined next week. Because the accused are abroad. The legal formalities have been completed and we entered the judicial process and the first trial session will be held at early 2024.
Gharibabadi also said: “We have to wait for the court to issue its verdict. But the charges and crimes are clear. Our goal is to uphold justice and fight impunity. The United States had imposed extensive security measures for the accused before the case were filed against the accused.” He added: “This crime is huge, the accused must be tried and their crimes will never go unanswered. They should not feel safe, the shadow of insecurity should continue until the end of the life of these criminals.”
Regarding the assassination of Martyr Soleimani and his companions, two letters have been sent to the Americans through the diplomatic channel
Regarding the process of filing a judicial case in Iraq, Gharibabadi reiterated: “We formed a joint committee with the government of Iraq to deal with this case. Four rounds of meetings have been held in Baghdad and Tehran, and the last one was last year. Of course, the investigation in the judicial system of Iraq took a long time, but the authorities in Iraq assured that the indictment would be delivered to the court more quickly. The court of Iraq issued an arrest warrant for Trump at the very beginning.
The Vice President added: “In the international field, a lawsuit is being filed before the International Court of Justice using the capacity of the 1973 Convention, and it has been decided to go through this process of filing a lawsuit as well.”
In the end, he noted: “So far, two letters have been sent to the US through the diplomatic channel. The basic principle in the framework of the 1973 Convention is based on the extradition of the accused to Iran for trial. If they refuse, they should be tried in their own country. The deadline for the first letter has passed and the second letter will expire soon. After this, we will practically enter the phase of referring the case and documents to the International Court of Justice.”