justice
Three more protesters in Iran executed
Despite global protests, executions in Iran continue. photo
© Jonas Walzberg/dpa
After controversial and internationally criticized trials, Iran executed three more demonstrators. At the beginning of the year there was an outcry about an execution.
In Iran, three more protesters have been executed after controversial trials. The men were executed in the morning, the Misan justice portal reported. The protesters were accused of killing three security forces in the metropolitan city of Isfahan during nationwide demonstrations against the Iranian authorities in November. The allegations cannot be verified independently.
The men executed were Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kasemi and Said Jakobi. According to Islamic legal opinion in Iran, they were accused of, among other things, “waging war against God” and sentenced to death. According to research by the “New York Times”, Mirhashemi was a karate champion. Only a few days ago it became known that Iran’s Supreme Court confirmed the verdicts. Human rights activists and relatives fought to the end to prevent the execution of the death sentences. Amnesty International reported that the confessions were extracted under torture.
“Don’t let them kill us”
For days, families have been fighting for the lives of their sons who have been sentenced to death. Parents sometimes held out in front of the detention center while enforcement became more and more likely. Crowds gathered outside the prison Monday night to protest the impending executions. Amnesty International recently circulated a handwritten note from the three men, which is said to have been smuggled out of the detention center. “Don’t let them kill us,” the note said.
Human rights activists in Iran have been talking about a wave of executions for several weeks. According to UN estimates, more than 200 people have already been executed in Iran this year. Organizations such as Amnesty International particularly criticize the high proportion of ethnic minorities. According to a report, the number of recorded executions in Iran rose from 314 in 2021 to 576 in 2022. The executions of two EU citizens had also sparked international criticism. These are comparatively rather unusual.
A German-Iranian convicted in Iran is also threatened with execution. In February, a revolutionary court held 68-year-old Djamshid Sharmahd responsible for a terrorist attack, among other things. Family members and human rights activists described the allegations as unfounded and criticized the procedure as grossly unfair. Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had called on Tehran to reverse the “absolutely unacceptable” and arbitrary verdict. Iran does not recognize dual citizenship.