The Hague Court Will Rule on America's Objection to Iran's Complaint on February 13

According to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, the court will announce its ruling regarding America's objections to Iran's complaint against the United States on Wednesday, February 13. In a statement released on Friday evening, the International Court of Justice announced that the ruling will be read by Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf, the president of the court. Iran's complaint against the United States is based on the 1955 Treaty of Amity signed between Iran and the United States. In June 2016, the Islamic Republic of Iran submitted a petition to the International Court of Justice claiming that the United States has violated this treaty. Iran's complaint is related to a ruling by Washington courts regarding the seizure of two billion dollars from the assets of the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the U.S. According to a federal court ruling in 2007, Iran was ordered to pay $2.65 billion in compensation to the families of victims of the 1983 bombing at the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut and other attacks linked to Iran. Following the confirmation of this ruling in 2014, nearly two billion dollars of the seized assets of the Central Bank of Iran were confiscated to pay compensation to the victims' families. According to a schedule published by the Hague court, both parties had the opportunity to present their defenses and arguments in four oral hearings over four days from October 8 to 11 this year. U.S. lawyers rejected the claims of a treaty violation by Washington, insisted on Iran's support for terrorism, and argued that Tehran lacked the jurisdiction to file a complaint against the seizure of its assets in the U.S. U.S. lawyers do not accept the nature of the Central Bank of Iran as a 'corporation' and argue that it does not fall under the protection of the treaty. Iranian lawyers, in separate sessions, rejected the U.S. defenses with legal arguments, emphasized the corporate status of the Central Bank, and attempted to prove that Washington's actions violated the treaty. The Iranian delegation stated that the allegations of terrorism against Tehran are a 'trick to mislead the judicial process.' Ultimately, the U.S. delegation requested the International Court of Justice to dismiss Iran's case regarding the frozen assets related to the victims of the 1983 bombing in Lebanon, and the result of this objection is expected to be announced on February 13. The Hague ruling: victory or defeat for Iran? The Hague court also demanded the immediate lifting and suspension of unilateral U.S. sanctions against Iran based on the 'Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations and Consular Rights' between the two countries, which were implemented following Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the JCPOA. The Iranian legal team accused Washington of intending to 'suffocate' Iran's economy, and Iranian representatives at the International Court of Justice described U.S. punitive actions as 'blatant economic aggression.' Ultimately, in that case, after hearing arguments from both sides, the Hague court issued a preliminary ruling that the United States must ensure that its unilateral sanctions against the Islamic Republic do not negatively affect essential goods or the safety of passenger flights. The preliminary ruling emphasized that U.S. unilateral sanctions against Tehran should be limited such that they do not impact the safety of Iranian passenger flights and the free trade of essential goods such as medicine, medical equipment, agricultural products, and food. This ruling was welcomed by Iranian officials, who described it as a significant success. In contrast, the United States objected to the ruling of the International Court of Justice in favor of Iran on October 3, claiming that the court lacked the necessary jurisdiction to adjudicate this case. Following this, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Iran of abusing the Hague court for political purposes and stated that the court had dismissed all of Iran's baseless claims. Pompeo announced that the United States would terminate its participation in the Treaty of Amity and withdraw from it, stating, 'This decision has been made after a 39-year delay.' Although the rulings of the International Court of Justice in The Hague are considered final, binding, and not subject to appeal, in the last days of Azar this year, Mohsen Mohibi, the Islamic Republic of Iran's liaison representative at the International Court of Justice, sent a letter to the U.S. representative, protesting what he called the 'violation' of the temporary order by the U.S. and requested that he inform Iran about the actions taken by the United States regarding the implementation of this order.