TEHRAN- Mohammad Jafar Montazeri, the Prosecutor General of Iran, has requested Sweden to look into the "illegal behaviors" of Swedish authorities in the arrest and custody of Iranian national Hamid Nouri, noting that his trial and incarceration revealed flagrant abuses of human rights.

Montazeri asked the court of appeal to look into the cases and uphold Nouri's right to a fair trial in a letter to his Swedish counterpart in which he listed some of the actions taken by the relevant Swedish authorities that were against human rights norms.

According to him, prosecutors have a responsibility to uphold public rights, preserve societal safety, establish justice, and create the suitable environment for defendants to present their own defense.

“People should not be prosecuted without sufficient reasons and documents, and even if there are grounds for suspecting a crime, the necessary reasons for an unimpeded defense should be provided so that the defendant can prove his innocence,” he stressed.

As Montazeri said, Swedish forces violently detained Nouri and kept his family and the Iranian embassy in the dark about his location.

He stated that the lengthy period of time spent in solitary confinement, the denial of consular contact, the beating and torture he suffered at the hands of prison guards, and the lack of access to medical care were all grave violations of the defendant's basic rights.

Since Sweden imprisoned and tried former Iranian official Hamid Nouri on spurious charges brought by the terrorist Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO), relations between Stockholm and Tehran have soured.

In November 2019, Nouri was detained as soon as he landed in Sweden at the Stockholm Airport.

Nouri has adamantly denied the accusations that he participated in the 1988 murder and torture of MKO members by his accusers.

Nouri was given a life sentence by a Swedish court in July. Based on the MKO claims, the court—which Iran first said was illegal—convicted Nouri of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

In his letter, Montazeri objected to the MKO's use of witnesses despite the organization's involvement in the murder of thousands of Iranian citizens.

In addition, he maintained, they gathered outside the court and yelled slogans, psychologically persuading the judges to give Nouri a life sentence.

He went on to add, “Numerous formal and substantive problems can be seen in the handling of Hamid Nouri’s case by the prosecutor’s office and the Swedish judicial system, including the lack of jurisdiction of the court, the issuance of a political statement, and your false claim that the Iranian government did not cooperate despite repeated requests.”

The top Iranian judge also urged a fair and just trial for Nouri, so that he may defend himself and the judges are not influenced by MKO forces.

He vowed to utilize all available legal means in order to prove the flagrant violation of Nouri’s rights and challenge his “invalid sentence” that “violates basic international laws until the full realization of his rights.”