NGOs Seek Legal Action In France Against Iranian Official For Torture

Two rights groups in France have lodged a legal complaint against Iran's Paralympic committee chief, accusing him of torture and crimes against humanity.

Ghafour Kargari, who currently serves as the president of Iran's national Paralympic committee, is presently in France attending a gathering with representatives from other nations participating in the 2024 Summer Paralympics games, according to statements from event organizers.

The two human rights groups assert that Kargari was a former commander of the Quds Force, a division of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) responsible for clandestine military operations and intelligence efforts throughout the Middle East.

Emmanuel Daoud, an attorney representing the French collective Femme Azadi and the Swedish NGO House of Liberty who filed the complaint, stated that France should not have issued him a visa for the meeting.

"The IRGC and the Quds group have been at the forefront of the violent repression of peaceful movements for democracy, civil rights and equality of men and women in Iran," they said in a document filed with France's anti-terror prosecutors and seen by AFP.

Given Kargari's high-ranking position in Iran's military hierarchy, the organizations assert that he was involved in formulating and executing strategies for these groups, leading them to argue that his actions "could also be qualified as crimes against humanity."

The 2024 Summer Paralympics are scheduled to be held from August 28 to September 8, featuring the participation of over 4,000 athletes.