Iran tried to kill politician in Madrid as a warning to the EU

The Spanish justice system is preparing to judge eight people for attempting to kill a former leader of the Popular Party and Vox in Madrid in 2023 on behalf of the Iranian regime and as a warning to Spain and the European Union.

The attack on Alejo Vidal-Quadras, on November 9, 2023, on a street in Madrid, was intended as “revenge for his political activity in favor of the Iranian resistance, as well as to warn the Government of Spain and the European Union that it should not welcome the movements of that resistance, which the Iranian regime classifies as terrorists,” reads a ruling by Judge Santiago Pedraz, of the National Court, the court in Spain that investigates and judges the most serious crimes.

In the document, dated July 9, to which Lusa had access, the judge prosecutes eight people , of different nationalities, accused of crimes of belonging to a criminal association and attempted terrorist homicide .

Alejo Vidal-Quadras, now 80 years old, was shot in the face on November 9, 2023, by a man who left the scene on a motorcycle driven by another person and who ended up being arrested in the Netherlands, months later, after having initially fled to Portugal , according to the conclusions of the judicial investigation contained in the order of Judge Santiago Pedraz.

The Spanish justice system recalls the political career of Vidal-Quadras, former leader of the Spanish Popular Party (PP, right), especially the period in which he was a MEP and Vice-President of the European Parliament (from 1999 to 2014), marked by support for the Iranian opposition and activism in defense of various resistance movements to the Tehran regime, such as the People's Mujahideen (MEK) organization.

An activity that led to him being known as “the MEK man in Brussels,” highlights the judge at Spain’s National Court.

Public support for the Iranian opposition continued after he left the PP and co-founded Vox, a far-right party that acknowledged running a 2014 European campaign 80% funded by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).

At the time of the attack on Vidal-Quadras, the CNRI stressed, in a statement, that it had been in contact with the Spanish politician for the past 25 years and highlighted the “fundamental and unforgettable role” that the founder of Vox played in having the People's Mujahideen movement of Iran removed from the European Union (EU) list of terrorist organizations.

Thus, thousands of its members were protected in the Iraqi refugee camp of Ashraf, where they were located, and transported safely out of that country.

In the court order obtained by Lusa, the Spanish court states that the attack on Vidal-Quadras was directly ordered by the eight accused by individuals whose identities were not established during the investigation. However, it has no doubts about the objectives, which included ending the life of "a leading figure in Europe's opposition to the Iranian regime."

Days after the attack, on November 14, 2023, a direct "warning" was issued to the Spanish government and other European countries by the Iranian regime, the dispatch further highlights, citing a text from the semi-official Iranian news agency Fars about the "serious consequences" for Spain of supporting the resistance and Iranian opponents.

The judge also states that Iran has been involved in "covert operations" to "persecute, intimidate, and even assassinate opponents, dissidents, and critical voices" in several countries, with investigations open in the Netherlands, Denmark, and the United Kingdom.

Some of the eight defendants, whom the judge at Spain's National Court is sending to trial, have criminal records and/or are being investigated for other crimes in other countries, according to the same ruling.

They are all in the custody of Spanish authorities, except one, Sami Bekal Bounouare, accused of being the organizer of the attack, who is in an "unknown location", although it is suspected that he is in Iran.

This man, born in Spain 27 years ago, has already been linked by the justice system and police in other countries to other murders and attempted murders of Iranian and Iraqi activists, and was previously imprisoned in Italy for drug trafficking, as the Spanish National Court recalls.

The trial of the eight defendants has no start date and its implementation still depends on some judicial procedures in Spain.

Alejo Vidal-Quadras, who suffered physical injuries from the attack, has consistently accused the Iranian regime of being behind the attack.