The Belgian Constitutional Court has paved the way for a potential prisoner exchange between Belgium and Iran to facilitate the return of Belgian detainee Olivier Vandecasteele under certain conditions. The Supreme Court announced in a statement on Friday that it "rejected the appeal" filed by Iranian exiles against the Belgian law enacted in July 2022, which allows for the transfer of convicts.
However, it warned that if an Iranian convict is actually transferred to his home country, the Belgian government must ensure that the decision is subject to judicial review. The court clarified that "when the government makes a transfer decision, it must inform the victims of the actions of the convicted individual so that they can effectively review its legality before the primary court."
The agreement on "the transfer of convicted persons," established between Brussels and Tehran, has sparked controversy since its announcement last summer. The Belgian government considers it a means to secure the release of Vandecasteele, a humanitarian worker detained by Tehran since February 24, who has been sentenced to a total of 40 years in prison on charges of "espionage," of which he is expected to serve a maximum of 12 and a half years, according to Iranian authorities.
However, the National Council of Resistance of Iran, an opposition coalition in exile, has challenged the treaty in several courts, viewing it as a precursor to the release of Iranian diplomat Assadollah Assadi, who was sentenced to twenty years in prison by a Belgian court in 2021 for terrorism, and his delivery to Iran.
Diplomat Assadollah Assadi was convicted in 2021 for orchestrating a plan to bomb a gathering of the Iranian opposition council in the suburbs of Paris on June 30, 2018. This case has heightened tensions between Tehran and several Western capitals.
