Judge ‘assassinated' in southern Iranian city
Today's attack comes after two judges were shot dead inside Iran's Supreme Court in January. (EPA Images pic)
TEHRAN : A criminal court judge in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz in Fars province was assassinated this morning on his way to work, the judiciary said.
'This morning, two individuals attacked and assassinated judge Ehsan Bagheri, head of branch 102 of the criminal court 2 in Shiraz, while he was on his way to work,' the judiciary's Mizan Online reported.
'Unfortunately, as a result of this terrorist act, he was martyred,' it added.
The assailants remain at large, and their motives are not yet known.
Bagheri, 38, had more than 12 years of judicial experience and was a native of Fars province, whose capital Shiraz is located about 900km south of Tehran.
He previously served as a prosecutor and investigator in revolutionary courts in several cities, including Shiraz, before being appointed to lead branch 102 of the criminal court.
Chief justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei ordered a special investigation into the killing.
The attack comes after two judges were shot dead in a rare assault inside Iran's Supreme Court in January.
A gunman opened fire in what the judiciary described as a 'planned act of assassination', killing veteran judges Ali Razini and Mohammad Moghisseh before taking his own life.
Both men had presided over high-profile national security cases.
Authorities said at the time that an investigation was underway, but the motive remained unclear.
Last night, a man killed four people in the same city before being shot and arrested by security forces.
No further details have been released.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
2 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Are we intolerant of criticisms? — Hafiz Hassan
JUNE 2 — On the same day (May 30) the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) announced that it would pursue contempt of court proceedings against senior lawyer Shafee Abdullah, the Supreme Court of India (SCI) heard contempt proceedings against YouTuber Ajay Shukla for airing scandalous allegations against a senior Supreme Court judge. The SCI had taken suo moto cognisance of the issue the day before. Suo moto is Latin for 'on its own motion'. So, it was the SCI who initiated the contempt proceedings, not the Attorney-General of India. Shukla is the editor-in-chief of a digital channel. In a recent video, he allegedly made remarks about a Supreme Court judge. The SCI considered the remarks 'scandalous allegations widely published on YouTube [which] are likely to bring disrepute to the august institution of judiciary.' During the contempt proceedings before a bench comprising Chief Justice B.R. Gavai and Justices A.G. Masih and A.S. Chandurkar, the SCI observed that while the Indian Constitution guarantees free speech, it is subject to reasonable restrictions. Lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah speaks during a press conference at the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya on January 6, 2025. — Picture by Firdaus Latif A person cannot make contemptuous allegations defaming a judge of the Supreme Court under the guise of free speech. It is detrimental to the judiciary. Now, if contempt proceedings are taken against Shafee for his 'Nazi Germany' remarks, are we being intolerant of criticisms? What say you? * This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Trump tariff reprieve could create more risk in Treasury market
US President Donald Trump. — Reuters INVESTORS worldwide woke up last Thursday to news that the US Court of International Trade had ruled that US President Donald Trump exceeded his authority with many of the tariffs announced since January. But this news isn't as good as it may seem at first glance, especially for the US Treasury market. For now, the Trump administration has been given 10 days to return previously paid tariffs with interest to importing businesses. But in the meantime, the US Federal Court of Appeals can stay the lower court's order. And no matter what the appeals court decides, it seems likely that the case will make its way to the Supreme Court, which probably would not decide on the case until next June. A resolution is thus likely at least a year away. Until then, the legal uncertainty adds to the already record-high economic uncertainty being engendered by the Trump administration. Trump will likely try to find workarounds to impose the tariffs anyway. Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act appears to give the president the power to impose tariffs against foreign countries and businesses if they engage in 'unfair trade practices'. This was the legal authorisation that President Joe Biden used to impose tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, solar cells and other critical materials. It seems plausible that this act could be used as justification for imposing tariffs based on the 'unfair' practices – however ill-defined – that Trump believes created the United States trade deficit with other nations. Of course, these attempts would also be challenged in court and would likely make their way to the Supreme Court as well. If the various decisions ultimately go against the Trump administration, this would not only have serious implications for presidential powers moving forward, but also US Treasuries right now. The non-partisan Tax Foundation estimates that the tariffs Trump announced in recent months will bring in up to US$1.4 trillion in revenues over the next decade based on conventional assumptions. If the tariffs' potential negative impacts on gross domestic product (GDP) growth and inflation are taken into account, the additional revenue would likely be smaller, but it could still amount to more than US$920bil, according to the Tax Foundation. Meanwhile, the United States Congress is currently debating the Trump administration's budget bill, which includes significant tax cuts. The Tax Foundation estimates that this bill, if enacted, will increase budget deficits by an average of 1.4% of GDP per year over the next decade. This means the United States is projected to run budget deficits in excess of 7% of GDP for the foreseeable future. If the tariff revenues are eliminated, this deficit could increase by another 0.4% of GDP each year. My calculations, which take into account the above projections for budget deficits as well as estimates for nominal GDP growth over the next 10 years, indicate that the debt pile of the United States could grow by US$4.3 trillion over the next decade and push the United States debt and GDP ratio to the same level as Italy's. The result would likely be even higher Treasury yields, particularly for long-dated bonds, as investors would reasonably demand a higher term premium, or excess compensation for the risk of holding long-dated bonds versus rolling over short-dated debt. The clearest sign that the market is already getting anxious about the United States fiscal position is the movement in credit default swaps. The cost to insure against a default of the United States government in the next five years has risen to 54 basis points in recent months. This is higher than the cost of insuring against a default of Italy and almost as high as the insurance premium for Greece. — Reuters Joachim Klement is an investment strategist at Panmure Liberum. The views expressed here are the writer's own.
The Sun
16 hours ago
- The Sun
Iraq condemns ‘repeated Israeli attacks' on Lebanon
BAGHDAD: Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani on Sunday condemned Israeli attacks on Lebanon as he hosted Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, on his first visit to Baghdad since taking office. Israel has continued to strike Lebanon despite a November ceasefire that ended more than a year of conflict -- including two months of open war -- with militant group Hezbollah, which emerged severely weakened. Lebanese authorities reported on Sunday the third deadly Israeli raid on the country's south in four days. In a joint press conference with Aoun, Sudani denounced 'repeated Israeli attacks against Lebanon's sovereignty' which he said were in 'violation of international law'. The Iraqi prime minister called to 'fully implement' a UN Security Council resolution that ended a 2006 war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah and served as the basis for the latest truce, which went into effect on November 27. Under the truce terms, Hezbollah fighters were to withdraw north of the Litani River, about 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the border, and dismantle their military posts to the south. Israel, for its part, was to pull all its troops out of Lebanon but has maintained five positions it deems 'strategic' along the frontier. Sudani also said he discussed with the visiting Lebanese president 'shared opportunities in various sectors' including energy, telecommunications and commerce. Dominated by pro-Iranian parties, the Iraqi government has close ties with Lebanon and welcomed thousands of Lebanese people, mostly Shiite Muslims, displaced by the 2024 Israel-Hezbollah war. Tehran-aligned armed factions in Iraq are staunch allies of Lebanon's Shiite militant group Hezbollah. Since 2021, gas-rich Iraq has provided fuel for power stations in Lebanon, mired in a grave economic crisis. Last month Beirut said it was expecting a delivery of 320,000 tons of wheat from Iraq. In Baghdad, Aoun expressed his gratitude for 'all the support and donations' Iraq has given Lebanon. Aoun, who assumed the presidency in January, also met with his Iraqi counterpart Abdel Latif Rashid.
