By: Nova24tv.si
The response of representatives of Golob’s government after the start of U.S. and Israeli military operations in Iran was predictable. Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon expressed concern about violations of international law, but not about the mass killings that recently took place in Iran. A similar reaction came from Matjaž Nemec, a Member of the European Parliament and her party colleague, who even received praise from the Iranian regime for his public statement.
“We are still waiting for Ursula von der Leyen, Kaja Kallas and other European Union leaders to condemn the bombing of a girls’ school in Iran by Israel, after the number of deaths has risen to ‘180’. We demand an end to double standards and an end to Europe’s complicity in war crimes,” Nemec wrote.
Praise from the diplomatic mission of Iran to the European Union and Belgium followed shortly afterward. “For the leadership of EU institutions and most European leaders, international law apparently no longer applies when it concerns Iran, Lebanon or the Palestinians. Israeli and American war criminals are grateful for their contribution to hammering the final nail into the coffin of international law, especially when it comes to Israel and the United States,” they wrote on the social network X. Iran has in recent months faced harsh international criticism for violently suppressing anti‑regime protests that erupted earlier in the year. The exact number of civilians killed is unknown. The regime claimed that slightly over 3,000 people had died, while reports from non‑governmental organisations stated that the number was closer to 5,000.
The unusual interaction prompted a response from the leader of the opposition, SDS president Janez Janša. “Comrades Social Democrats and the ayatollahs once again hand in hand,” he wrote, adding the hashtag #IranNLBgate. Earlier, he was even more explicit, writing: “Her government enabled Iran to launder more than one billion U.S. dollars during the triple sanctions in 2009 and 2010. Without any legal consequences.”
Slovenian left has a long history of cooperation with the Iranian regime
The IranNLBgate affair refers to the revelation that, through Nova Ljubljanska banka (NLB), a series of suspicious transactions worth around one billion U.S. dollars were carried out between 2008 and 2010, linked to Iranian citizen Iraj Farrokhzadeh, despite international sanctions against Iran. The money allegedly flowed through accounts in Slovenia to numerous countries, while oversight mechanisms either failed or were deliberately ignored. The affair triggered political disputes in Slovenia, and a parliamentary inquiry was held on the matter. Law‑enforcement authorities completely failed to act.
The apparent closeness of the Social Democrats to the Iranian regime was also reflected in yesterday’s events in Brussels. According to Euronews, Spain and Slovenia jointly blocked an EU statement that would have condemned Iran for attacks on countries not involved in the latest military operations. Spain and Slovenia softened the strong condemnation of Iran, after which Germany and France issued a separate statement. The final EU declaration nevertheless included a condemnation that representatives of the Social Democrats were unwilling to utter: “Iran’s attacks and the violation of the sovereignty of several countries in the region are unacceptable. Iran must refrain from indiscriminate military attacks.”