Assassination of Iranian Supreme Court Judges Shakes Judicial Landscape
Two prominent judges of Iran's Supreme Court have been assassinated in a shocking attack at the Palace of Justice in Tehran, according to official sources from the Iranian judiciary. The victims have been identified as Ali Razini and Mohammad Moghiseh, while a third judge is reported to be wounded in the incident.
The attack is described as a planned assassination carried out by an armed assailant who infiltrated the Supreme Court. The motives behind this violent act remain obscure, and initial investigations reveal that the attacker had no legal cases pending within the court or any apparent connections to the judiciary.
The Supreme Court holds the position of the highest judicial authority in Iran, with its head being appointed by the supreme leader. Located in Tehran, the court's decisions are critical to Iran's judicial proceedings and its reach extends through various branches across the nation.
Reports indicate that the perpetrator, following the assault, committed suicide shortly after the shooting. However, this detail is unconfirmed. Other Iranian news outlets suggest that the attacker may have been an infiltrator posing under security force pretenses, having initially harmed a bodyguard with a knife before seizing their weapon to carry out the killings.
In a harrowing account of the events, Iran's semiofficial Mehr News Agency reports that the judges were shot with live ammunition, leading to their tragic demise.
Both judges were significant figures within Iran's influential judicial framework. Judge Mohammad Moghiseh held presiding authority over various political trials, notably those involving supporters of the 2009 opposition Green Movement. His role in these trials has resulted in sanctions from both the European Union and the United States citing human rights violations.
Judge Ali Razini, similarly a high-profile figure, has faced allegations from Iranian opposition groups, linking him to a series of extrajudicial killings of political prisoners in 1988.
The implications of this assassination may reverberate throughout Iran’s judicial system, raising concerns over security, the potential for unrest, and the future of political trials in a nation preoccupied with both internal and international scrutiny.
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