“This would not only breed more terrorism and hostage-taking, but it would create an appalling precedent and a new norm to afford impunity to the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism instead of punishing it. “What the government of Belgium is doing is pure capitulation to the Iranian regime’s terror demands and surrendering to Tehran’s hostage diplomacy," said Alireza Jafarzadeh, deputy director of the NCRI's Washington office. The Belgian plan to return the four to Iran essentially pardoned them, NCRI officials argued. Arefani was convicted and sentenced to 17 years in prison. Like Assadi, Sadouni and Naami were convicted and sentenced to 18 years in prison. Transfer authorization for the four is expected to receive formal approval by next week on July 14, NCRI officials said.Īssadi's accomplices, Nasimeh Maami, Amir Saadouni, and Mehrdad Arefani were arrested in Belgium and also charged with the attempted Paris bombing. “I urge my colleagues to join me to sound the alarm on this so-called arrangement." “I am shocked to find out that the Belgian gov has cut a deal with the world’s leading state-sponsor of terrorism & plans to send Iranian terrorists back to Iran to plot more terroristic acts,” said Texas Republican Congressman Randy Weber. The plan, which has received preliminary approval from the Belgian legislature, was swiftly condemned by 13 US Congress members in a letter to Belgium Prime Minister Alexander De Croo and by the Organization of Iranian American Communities. voiced their disbelief that Belgium was planning to allow the four convicted terrorists, who had the backing of Iran's regime, to return to Iran to serve out their prison terms. Protestors at the embassy in Washington D.C. He said that the Public Prosecutor ruled to arrest the eight individuals pending the investigation, adding that the inquiry is “ongoing and in its final stages.”ĬHICAGO: Hundreds of Iranian-American expatriates protested at Belgium’s US embassy against plans to release four Iranians convicted of attempting to kill civilians who attended an anti-Iran conference in 2018.Īsadollah Assadi was convicted and given a 20-year prison term by a Belgian court for his role in providing explosive materials to three accomplices who planned to kill people at the Paris event organized by the National Conference of Resistance of Iran, which was also attended by leaders of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran. Kanakreeh, who is also the council’s media spokesperson, said the offenses of the eight charged also included breaching hazardous materials management instructions issued under Jordan’s Environmental Protection Law. He said the report showed “accumulated” negligence at Aqaba port’s operating units, “wrong” container iron wire installation and failure to figure out handling times. Jordanian Judicial Council Secretary-General, Walid Kanakreeh, said the PPO-elected technical committee had submitted its report on the toxic gas incident, which revealed that a key cause behind the tragedy was “insufficient” risk assessment and failure to thoroughly handle containers full of highly hazardous materials. The kingdom’s Public Prosecution Office continued its probe procedures into the chlorine gas leak case and heard testimonies from 25 people who were present at the docking port, in addition to listening to other 135 testimonies during the course of the investigation earlier.Īt least 13 people were killed and more than 260 others injured after a tank of chlorine gas fell as it was being loaded by crane onto a ship in Aqaba on June 27, releasing the toxic substance. LONDON: Jordanian authorities on Thursday have charged eight people in multiple crimes, primarily offenses that led to death and damage of others’ money, following a gas leak in the southern port city of Aqaba, state news agency Petra reported.
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