Iranian deputy minister’s arrest sought

GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — A complaint has been filed in Switzerland accusing Iranian deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi of crimes against humanity linked to anti-government protests in his country in recent years, lawyers said Thursday.

The complaint, filed by an Iranian-Swiss citizen, said Gharibabadi “may have committed serious crimes contrary to international law” linked to protests over the death in custody of a woman, Mahsa Amini, the lawyers told Agence France-Presse, demanding the arrest of the deputy minister who has been in Geneva this week.

It suggested he could be “a co-perpetrator or, at the very least, that his responsibility could be engaged due to his position as a hierarchical superior at the time of the events.”

“We expect the Swiss authorities to arrest the accused as soon as possible,” said the lawyers William Bourdon and Philippine Vaganay, both French nationals.

“There is no other option,” they said in a statement sent to AFP.

“This obligation to arrest him is imperative under both Swiss and international law.”