In Iran, three more protesters have been executed after controversial trials. The men were executed on Friday 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 Kazemi and Saeed Yaghoubi. 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.
Human rights activists have criticized the use of the death penalty in Iran for years. The execution of four protesters at the beginning of the year sparked an outcry internationally and in Iran. According to critics, the aim of the state was to intimidate the protest movement. While street protests decreased significantly after the executions, many women and young people are now expressing their protest in other forms. In the big cities, for example, many women demonstratively ignore the headscarf requirement.
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 Jamshid 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. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had asked Tehran to reverse the “absolutely unacceptable” and arbitrary verdict. Iran does not recognize dual citizenship.
The wave of protests in the fall was triggered by the death of the young Iranian Kurd Jina Mahsa Amini. She died in police custody in mid-September after being arrested by the Morality Police for disobeying Islamic dress codes. Her death triggered the most serious protests in decades – first as part of a women’s movement against compulsory headscarves, then against the entire Islamic system. Iran’s political and clerical leadership is under pressure. More than 500 protesters were killed during the protests, according to human rights organizations.
Iran has been under theocratic rule since an uprising against the monarchy in 1979. Strict Islamic regulations prevail in the state on the Persian Gulf with almost 84 million inhabitants. The demonstrators and the Iranian opposition at home and abroad are demanding a secular democracy. The country has also been suffering from a severe economic crisis for some time. After tensions with the West and a dispute over Iran’s nuclear program, international sanctions have significantly weakened the economy.