Iran wraps up trial of Swedish EU diplomat

The trial of a Swedish EU diplomat wrapped up in Tehran on Sunday, with Iranian prosecutors seeking the maximum penalty for the man accused of spying for Israel.

The prosecutor said that 33-year-old Johan Floderus — who works for the EU diplomatic service — was charged with “very extensive intelligence cooperation with the Israeli regime,” according to the judiciary’s Mizan Online website.

“Given the important nature and adverse effects of the accused’s actions, I demand the maximum penalty,” Mizan reported the prosecutor as saying.

Floderus was charged with “corruption on earth,” which is one of Iran’s most serious offenses and carries a maximum penalty of death.

The Swedish national was arrested on April 17, 2022, at Tehran airport on his return to Iran from a trip with friends and has been on trial since December 2023.

No date has yet been set for the verdict.

Mizan published photos of Floderus in a prisoner’s uniform accompanied by his two lawyers in a near-empty Tehran courtroom.

It said the court sessions have ended, but his lawyers have a week to submit their defense.

Sweden and the EU have repeatedly called for Floderus’s immediate release, arguing that there was “absolutely no reason” for him to be held in Evin Prison, where some government opponents are also being held.

On Jan. 17, Sweden summoned the Iranian charge d’affaires to demand the release of citizens “arbitrarily detained” in Iran.