T he top court of the United Nations, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), began public hearings on Monday in a high-profile case concerning the seizure of Iranian assets in the US.
The case — known officially as Certain Iranian Assets (Islamic Republic of Iran v. United States of America) — was filed in the ICJ by Tehran in 2016. It seeks the unfreezing and return of nearly $2 billion in Iranian assets held in the US, The Print reported.
Iran and the US have had no formal diplomatic relations since 7 April 1980. The ICJ case revolves around the question of whether the external assets of a sovereign central bank enjoy some form of immunity from being seized and diverted by another country. The hearings are bound to have far-reaching implications, especially amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.