Belgium confirms it has no plans to transfer terrorist prisoners to Iran
In response to concerns raised by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), the Belgian ministries of foreign affairs and justice confirmed on Thursday that the country had no intention of transferring terrorists to Iran.
The NCRI, a branch of the Iranian opposition in exile, had expressed fears that Belgium was planning to extradite two of Assadollah Assadi's accomplices to Iran. Assadi, a former diplomat who was convicted of terrorism in Belgium, was exchanged for the Belgian hostage Olivier Vandecasteele and three others in 2023.
In a letter to Belgian MPs, the NCRI requested that they seek clarification from the government to confirm that Belgium had not negotiated the release of convicted terrorists.
Diplomatic meeting
According to the Iranian news agency ILNA, the Iranian deputy justice minister, Askar Jalalian, met with the Belgian ambassador to Iran, Michel Malherbe, on Monday. A photo of the meeting was published.
Among other things, the two officials discussed the treaty on the transfer of prisoners that was concluded during the previous legislative period. The former Belgian government had intended to use that treaty to secure the release of Olivier Vandecasteele, but ultimately chose a different approach.
According to the ILNA report, Iran wants to sign three other agreements on the extradition of criminals and mutual legal assistance. During the meeting, the Belgian ambassador announced that “his country is prepared to transfer two Iranians detained in Belgium to Iran”, ILNA reported, though no names were given.
'Incorrect' information
According to the NCRI, the prisoners in question are Amir Saadouni and Nasimeh Naami. The two were sentenced by a Belgian court in 2021 to 15 and 18 years in prison respectively for plotting an attack on a meeting of the Iranian opposition in Villepinte, near Paris.
However, this information from the NCRI is "incorrect", according to the Belgian ministries of foreign affairs and justice. "No transfer of terrorists has been approved or even considered, nor has any agreement to strengthen judicial cooperation been announced by the Belgian ambassador in Tehran," they said on Thursday evening.
Supporters of the National Council of Resistance of Iran wave the NCRI flag in Brussels in 2021 © PHOTO JULIETTE BRUYNSEELS / AFP
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