Issuance of $110 Billion Fine Against the U.S. Government in Tehran Courts

The head of the Tehran judiciary announced that 300 rulings have been issued against the U.S. government in the courts of this province, with the total amount of the U.S. condemnation reaching $110 billion. In 2017, members of parliament mandated the judiciary to allocate a special branch to address complaints from those harmed by 'illegal U.S. sanctions' or what they termed 'adventurous terrorist actions by the U.S. in the region.' According to Mehr News Agency, Gholamhossein Esmaili revealed the issued rulings during a television program on Monday (October 9). As Mr. Esmaili stated, these rulings were issued following an increase in the 'jurisdiction' of the Tehran judiciary by the Islamic Consultative Assembly to handle the Islamic Republic's lawsuits against the U.S. He added that the 'jurisdiction law' of the Tehran judiciary for addressing complaints from Iranian citizens against the U.S. government has existed for 'years.' The head of the Tehran judiciary further stated: 'To date, we have issued nearly three hundred rulings in favor of our citizens and against the U.S. government, amounting to $110 billion in condemnation for the U.S. in these cases.' This judicial official also claimed that the rulings issued in Tehran courts against the U.S. have 'specific applications in international arenas.' He elaborated that this pertains to issues related to prisoner exchanges that were influential in negotiations, as well as the return of some unjustly seized assets of our people and government by the U.S. The executive regulation of the jurisdiction law for the Iranian judiciary to handle civil lawsuits against foreign governments was approved by the cabinet in 2000. According to the first article of this regulation, 'Tehran courts can only address lawsuits by Iranian nationals against foreign governments if the defendant government has violated the immunity of the Islamic Republic of Iran as outlined in the law, in which case, based on the principle of reciprocity, the defendant government will lack immunity in the Iranian judiciary.' The statements of the head of the Tehran judiciary follow increased tensions between Iran and the U.S. after speculation about the potential unilateral withdrawal of the U.S. from the JCPOA agreement. While Yukiya Amano, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, has repeatedly confirmed Iran's compliance with the JCPOA, Donald Trump has described the agreement as 'the worst deal ever' and 'a source of shame for the United States.' If the U.S. government does not confirm Iran's compliance with the nuclear agreement in the coming days, the U.S. Congress will have 60 days to decide on reinstating suspended sanctions against Iran, a decision that could jeopardize the future of the nuclear agreement. Ayatollah Khamenei had previously threatened that if the U.S. tears up the JCPOA, 'we will burn it.' Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, recently stated that 'the Trump administration's policy has been to deprive Iran of the benefits of the JCPOA, but we will not allow the U.S. to take such action with our policies.' Zarif added that 'so far we have been successful in this regard and will continue to respond appropriately.' In this context, Iran has called for the release of Iranians who were 'detained at the request of the Americans.' A court in the U.S. has ordered Iran to pay a fine to Amir Hekmati.