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A collective of individuals affected by the government response amid the 2022 "Women, Life, Freedom" protests has initiated a first-of-its-kind judicial filing targeting 4 dozen identified Iranian authorities of suspected international crimes.

Judicial Move Pursued in the Argentinian System

The application for a legal inquiry to be opened was submitted within the Argentinian courts. This action was made by a coalition assisted by a non-governmental advocacy organization. Argentina's courts are recognized for hearing universal jurisdiction claims.

The document alleges that the reaction from state security apparatus to the protests included "discharging bullets, paintball guns, steel shot improperly used for close-range use, and other projectiles at civilians." The filing further details arbitrary roundups, abuse while imprisoned, and killings of individuals that are said to carry on to this day.

Officials Named Anonymously

Specific officers from within the range of Iran's intelligence apparatus have been identified in the legal documents, but their names are currently being kept confidential.

Individual Accounts Fuel the Case

One of the individuals behind the case, based in Britain Mahsa Piraei, commented that the objective "goes beyond revenge in a private capacity, but accountability and transparency." Her parent, Minoo Majidi, aged 62, was fatally shot in September 2022. Forensic analysis indicated over 167 metal pellets had been discharged into her back at extremely close proximity. She had been attending a gathering regarding the demise of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman who lost her life in custody.

Piraei, a member of Majidi's three offspring, was living abroad at the period of her mother's tragic killing. She went back to Iran at considerable peril to see the gravesite. Her sister Roya posted a image of herself by their mother's grave with her scalp shaved on a restricted social media account. A contact published the image, which was widely shared, ultimately forcing Roya to flee for Turkey.

Piraei stated: "Via legal filings and evidence the aim is to preserve evidence, identify offenses and stop the disappearance." She said her mother's death as "not an isolated incident but part of a systematic practice."

Other Litigants Are Those Shot in the Eye

The remaining claimants who have come forward are Kowsar Eftekhari and Mersedeh Shahinkar, both individuals who suffered blinding at close range by projectile weapons.

Eftekhari, a young student, was struck in the right eye in October 2022. She had been in the streets for an extended period, observing fellow protesters being shot with bullets and being beaten herself with shock weapons. During a protest on 12 October, she was at a rally near a university when a individual fired at her with multiple paintballs from a range of about a yard. He then allegedly shot her her eye when she did not obey his demand to scatter. A recording of the assault depicting blood pouring from her eye spread online, and she was subsequently offered protection in Germany.

Shahinkar, in her late thirties when assaulted on 18 October, only became aware what had happened when she felt something wet on her cheek. Fellow protesters warned her not to board an ambulance for fear of being delivered to a detention center. When she later got to a treatment facility, a employee ordered her to go away because they did not help demonstrators. A doctor saw her and referred her to a medical center, where Shahinkar claimed a object had accidentally damaged her eye so she would not be refused care. She published photos of her wounds online, and in early 2023, plainclothes officers confronted her, prompting her to flee Iran. She later received a prestigious human rights prize as a figure of the movement.

Universal Jurisdiction Creates Avenue for Complaint

The group seeking the criminal investigation assert that the filing is not seen just as a paper exercise with no hope of a practical outcome. Universal jurisdiction enables complaints to be probed in a foreign nation even if the offence did not occur in that country and the suspect is not located there. Argentina has notably open laws on such claims in the world.

The principle of universal jurisdiction has in the past resulted in dozens of convictions and the launch of investigations involving crimes carried out in many states. Proceedings are presently being handled in multiple nations worldwide.

As the request is solely for a legal inquiry, and this is not a civil lawsuit, there is no request by the litigants for financial restitution. This filing would not constitute the first case against Iranian officials initiated in Argentina.