A FORMER MEP has called on Nicola Sturgeon and the UK Government to ban Iran’s president from attending COP26, accusing him of “mass murder” and “genocide”.
Struan Stevenson, who served in the European Parliament for 15 years, also called on Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Home Secretary Priti Patel to intervene if Ebrahim Raisi sets foot in the UK.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and Stevenson have also handed an 111 page dossier to Police Scotland regarding Raisi’s crimes against humanity, and called for him to be arrested if he comes to the UK in a matter of weeks.
Police said they are currently assessing the information, but would not say if they would move forward with an arrest, should Raisi join other world leaders at the global climate summit in Glasgow.
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Hossein Abedini, of the NCRI, called for action against Raisi and asked the international community and governments to “spring into action” through legal means if he steps foot in their territory.
Speaking at a press conference in Glasgow on Wednesday, Stevenson said he had sent a formal request to Chief Constable Iain Livingstone, the head of Police Scotland, calling for an investigation into Raisi under universal jurisdiction into accusations of alleged genocide and crimes against humanity.
He said: “It was done not with the sole objective of stopping Raisi coming to COP26.
“We will hunt this man down in any country in the world that he dares to set foot in. There can be no impunity for crimes against humanity of this magnitude.”
A parallel action has also been raised with the Metropolitan Police Stevenson said that the case was of “major importance”.
He said: “This man must not be allowed to set foot in Scotland. Scotland does not take well to mass murderers coming here and if this man dares to attend COP26 he should be immediately arrested by the police.
“So I would urge the First Minister and Liz Truss the Foreign Minister, and the Home Secretary Priti Patel to get their heads together and discuss this matter and ensure that there is a political initiative taken that there is no way this man must be allowed to come to the United Kingdom, or indeed set foot in any other civilised nation.”
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The NCRI say Raisi was a key actor and member of the Death Commission in Tehran in 1988, established by the late Ayatollah Khomeini, the Supreme Leader of the Iranian regime, calling for the killing of those who supported opposition and democratic parties.
Hossein Abedini, deputy chair of the NCRI, said Raisi helped send 30,000 innocent people to the gallows during the massacre.
He said: “The Iranian regime’s new President has long been despised by the people of Iran, inside Iran, and he’s known as the Butcher of Tehran and the Butcher of the 1988 massacre. “And now there is a growing international condemnation and denunciation of Raisi and the squad of criminals and terrorists who have come to power in this cabinet.
(L-R) Tahar Boumedra, Hossein Abedini, Struan Stevenson and Ahmad Ebrahimi at the press conference on Wednesday
“That denunciation we believe has to now be translated into action, and Raisi should be banned from travelling abroad, and governments should spring into action through legal means if and when he steps foot in their territory.”
Abedini said Raisi should be held accountable for genocide and the many crimes against humanity he has “committed as a senior official of the Iranian regime” and called on the international community to investigate the massacre and his role in it.
He added that Raisis should not be allowed to set foot in countries outside Iran due to his crimes.
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He said: “This is why a formal request has been made to Police Scotland to arrest Raisi for crimes againts humanity if he decides to attend COP26 conference in Glasgow, and I think the mullah’s regime should hear this message from the international community very loud and clear, that the murderers of the Mullah’s Iranian regime should not be allowed to travel abroad and we will act urgently to prosecute genocidal actors and criminals against humanity like Raisi, not next week or next month, but now.”
Ahmad Ebrahini, who was a political prisoner in Iran for over a decade and witnessed Raisi's crimes, said: "Once we filed the complaint we asked the police, if he comes here we are happy to give you the details about we’ve gone through in prison and we want the police to arrest him for crimes against humanity and genocide."
Ebrahim Raisi has been President of Iran since August 3 2021 and previously held roles heading the Justice department and as a prosecutor
Raisi is believed to be considering attending the UN climate change conference, which starts later this month, as his first overseas visit.
However, Abedini is not convinced and thinks the regime is “scared”, but added that the NCRI would act against any “murderers” from the regime who try to attend or come to the UK.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “As organisers of Cop26, the UK Government and UNFCCC are responsible for inviting state delegations. The Scottish Government has no plans to meet with representatives from Iran during Cop26.
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“We wholeheartedly condemn human rights abuses and call on all states to uphold fundamental international standards – including the obligation to respect, protect and fulfil human rights.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We have received information which is being assessed.”
A UK Government source said it is understood Raisi is not attending COP26.
There are five plaintiffs in the case against Raisi. Farzaneh Majidi told the press conference how she lost five members of her family, including her 16-year-old brother, to the regime. You can watch what she had to say below.
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