A wax figure of Parviz Sabeti is seen at a former prison turned museum in Tehran, Iran on Feb. 8, 2023. (Photo by Hamidreza Mehraban via Tehran Photo Agency)

Amwaj

The story: A top official of the former Iranian monarchy’s security services is being sued in the United States. Alleging brutal torture under his watch, Parviz Sabeti—a longtime US resident—is facing a 225M USD lawsuit. The case has reignited debate over late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s 1941-79 reign. It also puts monarchists in an awkward position as Sabeti and SAVAK, the spy organization he worked for, remain accused of severe human rights abuses.

The coverage: The lawsuit alleges that Sabeti institutionalized torture in Iran, charging that practices developed under his tenure were continued by the revolutionaries who overthrew the monarchy.

  • Filed in an Orlando federal court, the suit describes Sabeti as one of the “most feared men” serving the last shah of Iran. It further alleges that Sabeti personally oversaw or authorized extreme torture methods, including electrocution and forced public recantations.
  • The three anonymous plaintiffs, all former dissidents now living in the US, said they continue to suffer severe psychological and physical trauma from their alleged torture.
  • SAVAK, the Bureau for Intelligence and Security of the State, was the secret police of the monarchy and operated from 1957 until the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Sabeti was the deputy head of the organization and led what is known as its key Third Division.

A broad range of outlets in Iran have welcomed the development, with conservative media particularly hailing the lawsuit.

  • Fars, a news agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), framed the case as a long-overdue reckoning. Describing Sabeti as “a notorious torturer,” it said he is now “caught in a legal trap.” Fars also portrayed his sudden resurfacing at anti-Islamic Republic protests in the US in 2023 as having “revived painful memories of SAVAK’s torture.”
  • Haft-e Sobh newspaper described the lawsuit as a “historic moment” and charged that Sabeti had evaded accountability for decades.
  • Hardline daily Vatan-e Emrooz framed the suit as a reckoning for SAVAK’s "brutality." It argued that Sabeti’s rare public reappearance in 2023 provided an opportunity for victims to seek justice, saying, “Every trial reveals a piece of SAVAK’s true nature—one of torture, repression and state terror."

Many on Iranian social media have also seen the lawsuit as positive, notably including critics of the Islamic Republic and its dire rights record.

  • Prominent human rights lawyer Shadi Sadr called it a “historic step,” arguing that accountability for officials of both the former monarchy and the Islamic Republic is crucial for Iran’s democratic future.
  • Journalist Aida Qajar warned against “whitewashing SAVAK’s crimes,” saying one cannot oppose torture under the Islamic Republic while excusing it under the monarchy.
  • Foreign-based rights journalist Mohammad Reza Nikfar said Sabeti was "the symbol of jail, torture and repression in Iran."
  • Other exiled activists welcomed the case as a challenge to monarchists. They argued that monarchists have ignored SAVAK’s abuses while advocating for political leadership by US-based Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s last monarch.

In contrast, Iranian pro-monarchy voices on Twitter/X have heavily criticized the lawsuit and slammed those who back it.

  • Pro-monarchy activist Navid Mohebbi dismissed the allegations against Sabeti, comparing the plaintiffs to “terrorists” and claiming they themselves have no regard for human rights.
  • Keyvan Abbasi, founder of Manoto TV—a London-based channel seen as sympathetic to Pahlavi—suggested that the case is politically motivated. Abbasi likened it to Al-Qaeda members suing governments that had cracked down on them.
  • More extreme monarchists issued threats against the plaintiffs and their lawyers, vowing to expose their identities and take revenge.

The context/analysis: Having largely been out of the public eye since the 1979 toppling of the monarchy, Sabeti appeared at an anti-Islamic Republic protest in the US in 2023. The move surprised many Iranians on social media and caused a stir in Iran.

  • Some Iranians at the time charged that Sabeti should be “put on trial” for his alleged crimes under the ousted Shah’s rule. Monarchists, however, were overjoyed at his resurfacing.
  • After his appearance at the rally, Manoto TV produced a multi-part documentary on Sabeti that included one-on-one interviews. The former top intelligence official defended SAVAK’s track record.

Sabeti has long been accused of torturing and killing government critics during his time with the Shah’s US-backed secret police. The former top intelligence official previously broke his silence in a 2012 interview with Voice of America where he defended SAVAK and said he "opposed torture."

  • The former top intelligence official previously broke his silence in a 2012 interview with Voice of America where he defended SAVAK and said he "opposed torture."