Saeed Mortazavi

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Saeed Mortazavi (سعید مرتضوی) is an Iranian judge and the General Prosecutor of Tehran.

Mortazavi became well-known as a hardline special judge for the press court. During his term at the press court, he ordered the closure of about 80^{[citation needed]} pro-reform newspapers that supported Mohammad Khatami in 1999 on blanket charges. In 2003, he was appointed as the general prosecutor of Tehran, Iran. This promotion caused an outcry from the reformist members of the Majlis of the time.

Mortazavi received international attention and a call for his arrest after he attended the first meeting of the U.N. Human Rights Council as a representative of Iran. Canada called for Mortazavi’s arrest in Germany due to his suspected complicity in the illegal arrest, rape, torture and murder of Canadian-Iranian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi in 2003. Official Iranian government inquiries found that Mortazavi took part in Kazemi’s interrogation and repeatedly attempted to obstruct the investigation into Kazemi’s death, including through intimidation of government officials and coercion of witnesses to produce false or altered testimony. Human rights organizations have implicated Mortazavi in illegal detentions, the torture of detainees, and coercing false confessions, and he is considered one of Iran's highest-profile rights violators, as he bears significant responsibility for turning Iran's judiciary into a tool of ongoing political crackdown.

The Canadian criminal code now gives the Canadian courts jurisdiction to prosecute torturers even if the torture occurs outside of Canada. If Canada can build a case against Mortazavi, it can request his arrest and extraditon.