Human Rights
Iran Hangs Kurdish Prisoner Convicted Of Killing Cleric
An Iranian Kurdish prisoner convicted of killing a cleric has been executed despite complaints from rights groups over a lack of transparency in the judicial process.
Kamran Sheikheh had been in jail for almost 15 years before he was hanged in a prison in Urmia, West Azerbaijan Province, in the early hours of July 25.
Sheikheh was the last of seven people convicted of and executed for the September 2008 killing of Abdolrahim Tina, a congregational prayer leader in Sheikheh’s hometown of Mahabad. All seven people were executed in the last eight months, according to the Kurdish rights group Hengaw.
Amnesty International had long insisted that all seven suspects were sentenced to death in “grossly unfair trials marred by claims of torture” to exact confessions. Hengaw said the trials were “illegal and not transparent.”
Aside from murder, they were also accused of being Salafists -- an ultraradical sect under Sunni Islam.
In an open letter years ago, Sheikheh and the other six suspects denied all charges and alleged that they were subjected to various forms of torture, including mock executions, sleep deprivation, and being hung from the ceiling.
As of July 25, at least 286 people have been executed in Iranian prisons this year, according to Iran Human Rights.
According to Amnesty, Iran carried out 853 executions in 2023, with at least 481 executions for narcotics convictions.
In April, Amnesty accused the Islamic republic of “weaponizing the death penalty” to target “protesters, dissidents, and members of oppressed ethnic minorities” and called for “a robust global response” to pressure Tehran to implement a moratorium on the death penalty.
- By Kian Sharifi
Call To Investigate Iran's 1980s 'Genocide' A Step Toward Ending 'Cycle Of Impunity'
A UN expert has accused Iran of committing genocide in the 1980s, when thousands of political prisoners as well as members of religious and ethnic minorities were executed.
Javaid Rehman, the UN's special rapporteur on the rights situation in Iran, said in a July 22 report that the summary and extrajudicial executions during 1981-82 and in 1988 amounted to crimes against humanity as well as genocide.
It is not the first time the mass executions have been described as genocide. But observers say Rehman's findings were an important step toward holding the Islamic republic accountable for its crimes.
"I think this may be one of the most important reports by a special rapporteur in recent years," Mahmud Amiri-Moghaddam, director of the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights group, told RFE/RL's Radio Farda.
"It brings attention to the early 1980s, when the Islamic republic committed huge crimes, but nothing was ever done about them," he added.
Human rights lawyers say Rehman's findings could lead to the UN launching an international probe into crimes committed during the first decade of the establishment of the Islamic republic in 1979.
'Systematic Patterns'
Iran's new clerical rulers executed and forcibly disappeared thousands of political opponents between June 1981 and March 1982, according to Rehman's report.
The victims were "arbitrarily detained and subjected to systematic patterns of enforced disappearance, torture and summary, arbitrary and extrajudicial executions on religiously motivated and vaguely defined charges," the report said.
Women, some reportedly raped before being killed, and hundreds of children were among those executed, the report said.
Most of the victims, the UN expert said, were members of the Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO), an exiled opposition group, as well as leftist parties and groups.
Rehman also drew attention to the executions and killings of members of the Baha'i community in the 1980s, when at least 200 followers were killed, according to rights groups.
Rehman said Baha'is -- Iran's largest non-Muslim minority -- were "targeted with genocidal intent and persecution."
During the summer of 1988, an estimated 5,000 prisoners were secretly executed in prisons. Many of the victims were members of the MKO, which had aligned with Baghdad during the devastating 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War.
Prisoners were sent to their deaths following interrogations that lasted just a few minutes, according to rights groups.
Former prison official Hamid Nouri in 2022 became the first, and only, Iranian official to be convicted for his role in the executions, though he was ultimately released as part of a prisoner swap between Stockholm and Tehran.
"The Iranian regime and its leaders should not be allowed to escape the consequences of their crimes against humanity and genocide," Rehman wrote in his report.
Rehman's findings were issued ahead of his mandate ending on July 31. He was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council but does not speak on behalf of the UN.
Iran has rejected Rehman's report and accused him of "serving the interests" of the MKO.
Accountability Mechanism
Rehman is not the first to accuse Tehran of committing genocide in the 1980s.
A 2011 report commissioned by the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center, a U.S.-based organization that promotes human rights in Iran, said the mass executions in 1988 amounted to genocide.*
But Rehman's allegations encompass the frenzy of executions that took place during the entire decade.
Gissou Nia, a human rights lawyer and director of the Strategic Litigation Project at the Atlantic Council in Washington, says the special rapporteur's findings can set the stage for the UN to "establish some further inquiry that has a documentation and accountability function."
This is in line with Rehman's own recommendation for the establishment of an independent international investigative and accountability mechanism.
"What is incredibly important is that some of the perpetrators of the 1988 massacre continue to travel or have children in jurisdictions that do have the ability to prosecute atrocity crimes," Nia told RFE/RL.
"There really needs to be a push on national court systems that have obligations to prosecute extraterritorial crimes under universal jurisdiction," she added
Some of those implicated in the executions rose to powerful positions in the Islamic republic, including late President Ebrahim Raisi and former Justice Minister Mostafa Purmohammadi.
"These guys continue to enjoy the highest offices in the Islamic republic, and this is just unacceptable," Nia said. "The cycle of impunity really does need to end."
*CORRECTION: A previous version of this story identified the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center as a U.K.-based organization. It is based in the United States.
With reporting by Elaheh Ravanshad of RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Iran Hangs 8 In 2 Days Amid Concerns Over Rise In Executions After Election
Rights groups say Iranian authorities executed eight people over the weekend, bolstering concerns that the regime may accelerate the carrying out of death sentences after a lull ahead a snap presidential election held earlier this month.
The human rights-focused news agency HRANA reported that four people, including an Afghan national, were hanged on July 21 in Qezel Hesar prison in Karaj. The news agency said they were convicted of drug-related charges.
Rights groups have documented a sharp rise in the number of Afghans executed in Iran, with activists saying they do not get fair trials.
Separately, the Oslo-based organization Iran Human Rights said four people, including a woman, were hanged on July 20 in a prison in Shiraz. Three of them were convicted of murder and one was found guilty of rape.
Earlier this month, Iran Human Rights said executions had dropped by 30 percent in the first six months of 2024 but warned that it could pick up following the snap presidential election.
Reformist lawmaker Masud Pezeshkian beat ultraconservative rival Saeed Jalili in a runoff vote on July 5.
Human Rights Watch on July 15 urged Pezeshkian to fight the rising number of executions in Iran.
As of July 22, at least 268 people have been executed in Iranian prisons this year, more than half of whom were convicted on drug-related charges, according to Iran Human Rights.
Amnesty International says Iran carried out 853 executions in 2023, with at least 481 executions for narcotics convictions.
Because the Iranian government does not publish official statistics on the number of executions, international and Iranian rights groups document cases using open-source data such as state media and human rights organizations.
Iranian Police Question Women Who Marched In Religious Festival Without Head Scarves
A video widely shared on social media on July 16 shows women in the Iranian city of Karaj appearing without hijabs, or Islamic head scarves, at a procession marking Ashura, the holiest day on the Shi'ite religious calendar. Police officials said that they had identified some of the women and called them in for questioning. Their appearance at the religious festival is part of a broader movement of Iranian women rejecting the Islamic dress code and risking a sometimes brutal response from the authorities.
'Overwhelming Sorrow': Imprisoned Iranian Nobel Laureate Marks 9 Years Since Seeing Her Children
Kiana and Ali Rahmani were only 8 years old when they left Iran to reunite with their father, Taqi Rahmani, who had fled the country as the Iranian authorities sought to arrest him.
Their mother, activist Narges Mohammadi, could only imagine the scene from her jail cell as her children would be taken from her for an "unknown" period of time and endure a "separation that would make me a stranger to my children and them unfamiliar to me."
“I haven’t seen my mom in nine years. I have become used to growing up without a mother,” Kiana, now 17, told Roya Maleki of RFE/RL’s Radio Farda as she marked another anniversary of separation from her mother on July 16.
“My father is a good dad; he has been both a father and a mother,” she added.
In a statement posted on her website on July 16, Mohammadi recalled staying awake through the night in her prison cell on July 16, 2015, knowing her children would be on a plane to France soon.
The separation, she said, “felt like vanishing into a misty void of lost connections, tearing a mother and her children apart, leaving us in an indescribable abyss of heartache and longing.”
"A separation that would turn me into an unfamiliar woman to my children, bearing the name ‘mother’ in a ‘misplaced’ manner," she added.
Mohammadi, 52, has been campaigning for human rights in Iran for decades and has been in and out of prison in the last 20 years. She has been convicted five times since March 2021 and is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence.
She is currently in jail for “spreading propaganda” against the Islamic republic.
Kiana recalls that it was “difficult” going through adolescence as a young girl without her mother, forcing her to turn to her friends and other women for advice.
“I had to learn things that a mother should teach her daughter. I had to ask my friends or their mothers whenever I had a question because I did not have a mother,” she said.
Despite remaining behind bars for so long, Mohammadi has remained at the forefront of Iran's women's rights movement.
Her efforts were honored last October when she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Her children accepted the award on her behalf in December.
Kiana said the award raised her mother’s spirits but worsened her conditions in prison because it led to further restrictions, such as limited visiting privileges and phone calls.
Despite not seeing their mother for half of their lives, Ali said they had learned from their mother to “defend our brothers and sisters” from the Middle East.
“We come from a place where there is little freedom and war is constant,” he added.
In her statement, Mohammadi bemoaned that not seeing her children for so long would make her a “stranger” to them.
“I hope my children understand that I, like all imprisoned mothers…was a loving mother whose heart still aches with overwhelming sorrow for her children,” she wrote.
Written by Kian Sharifi based on an interview by Roya Maleki of RFE/RL’s Radio Farda.
The Push To Recognize 'Gender Apartheid' As A Crime
The world has long been aware of the scourge of apartheid -- the systemic segregation or discrimination of people based on their race. But what about the institutionalized practice of singling people out for ill-treatment due to their gender?
The push to recognize "gender apartheid" under international law is gaining steam, with oppression against women and girls in Afghanistan and Iran fueling calls for immediate action, but tremendous obstacles remain.
What Do They Want?
Advocates want to clearly define gender apartheid as a crime under international law. Currently, only "persecution" on the basis of gender is recognized as a crime against humanity. But rights groups and activists say the concept of persecution does not fully capture the scope of the abuses committed under a system of institutionalized gender apartheid.
The goal is for the United Nations to make up for this gap by legally shielding women and girls from systemic abuse and violence.
Afghan women's rights defenders are credited with being the first to articulate the concept of gender apartheid in the 1990s, during the Taliban's first regime.
Since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, the hard-line Islamist group has reimposed its oppressive policies against women and girls, including severe restrictions on their appearances, freedom of movement, and right to work and study.
Hoda Khamosh, an Afghan women's rights activist, says the recognition of gender apartheid would greatly benefit women's rights in the country.
"We would be able to hold accountable the authorities and perpetrators of gender-based violence and discrimination against women," Khamosh told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi.
Meanwhile, Iranian women’s rights activists have said the institutionalized discrimination against women in the Islamic republic amounts to gender apartheid.
UN experts have said the violent enforcement of the hijab law and punishments on women and girls who fail to wear the head scarf could be described as a form of gender apartheid.
When Do They Want It?
Today. The United Nations has been considering the adoption of a major treaty that would unite signatories against crimes against humanity.
Dozens of rights groups and hundreds of individuals signed a statement in March calling for gender apartheid to be included on the draft list of such crimes.
The hope is that the UN General Assembly will adopt procedures to begin negotiations on the treaty when it next meets in September.
Tough Going
While the concept of gender apartheid has increasingly been used by the United Nations and international organizations, particularly in connection with abuses against women and girls in Afghanistan and Iran, there have also been missed opportunities.
During UN-hosted talks in Doha with the Taliban in early July, for example, women did not have a seat at the table.
Rights activists calling for the recognition of gender apartheid and for sanctions to be imposed on those responsible accused the UN of giving legitimacy to the Taliban's rule and of betraying its commitment to women's rights.
"The international community has a moral obligation to ensure the protection of Afghan women’s rights and uphold the principles of justice and equality in any engagement with the Taliban," Sima Samar, former chairperson of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), told CIVICUS, a global alliance of civil society organizations.
Imprisonment And Death In Iran
Like the Taliban in Afghanistan, Iran's clerical regime has been labeled a "gender apartheid regime" by rights watchdogs.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian human rights activist who lives in exile, is among the key signatories of a global effort to End Gender Apartheid Today.
The movement, highlighting the international community's successful effort to end apartheid in South Africa decades ago, noted that women in Iran are banned from many fields of study, sporting events, and from obtaining a passport or traveling outside the country without their husband's consent.
The Iranian authorities' goal is to maintain women's subjugation to men and the state through a system of laws, the movement said. Violations can lead to "violence, imprisonment, and death."
"The situations in the Islamic Republic of Iran and under the Taliban in Afghanistan are not simply cases of gender discrimination," the movement concluded in its call for support.
"Rather, these systems are perpetuating a more extreme, systematic, and structural war against women designed to dehumanize and repress them for purposes of entrenching power.”
Written by Michael Scollon with reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Azadi
- By RFE/RL and
- Will Tizard
Iranian Film Casts Real Refugees To Show Plight Of Displaced Afghans
An Iranian writing-directing duo has filmed the story of millions of Afghans living for decades in Iran without fundamental rights. Alireza Ghasemi and Raha Amirfazli cast real Afghan refugees as their characters, secretly shooting in locations where their cast cannot legally go. In the Land Of Brothers screened at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in July, shedding light on a population of permanent refugees that began streaming into Iran in the 1980s during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Many are still eking out a living, taking on unofficial manual labor jobs while facing constant discrimination.
Iranian Female Prisoners Call Activist's 'Disgraceful' Death Sentence An Ominous Sign
A group of female Iranian prisoners has warned of a possible wave of executions, pointing to the recent "shameless and disgraceful" death sentence handed down to labor activist Sharifeh Mohammadi.
The group of 16 women said in a letter that prior to last week's presidential election, authorities had slowed down the pace of executions "to the maximum extent possible before the electoral show."
"However, it will now accelerate the issuance and execution of death sentences and will suppress the families of the victims more than before," the letter, which demands the canceling of Mohammadi's punishment, added.
Earlier this month, the Revolutionary Court in the northern city of Rasht said Mohammadi had been convicted on charges of "armed rebellion against the state" and included as evidence her membership in an independent labor organization.
She was also accused of being a member of the banned Komala Kurdish separatist party, which her family denied.
"[The authorities] want to suppress the voice of protest and demands...of women who are louder now than before in the arena of justice," the letter says.
Mohammadi’s cousin, Vida Mohammadi, told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that her niece was tortured in prison following her arrest on December 5 and that she had spent several months in solitary confinement.*
Vida Mohammadi said Sharifeh Mohammadi was not affiliated with any political organization inside or outside the country.
The Hengaw rights watchdog has said Mohammadi "endured mental and physical torture at the hands of Iranian Intelligence interrogators...who sought to extract a forced confession from her."
The U.S.-based Abdorrahman Boroumand Center, which focuses on Iranian issues, said the death sentence was linked to "her involvement with an independent labor union."
"This extreme ruling highlights the harsh crackdown on dissent within Iran, particularly against labor activists amid economic turmoil," it said.
Major protests erupted in Gilan Province and throughout the country in 2022 following the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish-Iranian woman who had been detained for allegedly flouting Iran's strict dress code for women.
More than 500 protesters were killed nationwide and thousands arrested during months of unrest.
Domestic and international rights activists have accused Tehran of using the death penalty to intimidate protesters and others following the mass demonstrations.
*CORRECTION: A previous version of this story identified Vida Mohammadi as Sharifeh Mohammadi's aunt. She is a cousin.
- By Michael Scollon and
- Nasrin Ashfar
Face Of Iran's Bloody 1999 Student Protests Says Repression Even Worse Today
In the early morning of July 9, 1999, students at Tehran University were sleeping off a long day of demonstrating for reforms in Iran when they were awakened to brutal reality.
Plainclothes police and paramilitary volunteers stormed into dormitories, kicking in doors and beating students in their rooms. Some were thrown from windows and at least one student was killed, while hundreds were injured.
What had begun as relatively low-level demonstrations against the closure days earlier of a reformist newspaper would quickly spread from the capital to other major cities.
Over the course of a few days, at least five protesters would be left dead, hundreds injured, and thousands more detained in what would stand for a decade as the largest antiestablishment protests in Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Looking back at the events 25 years later, a former student who unwittingly became the face of the demonstrations against the clerical establishment says the protesters truly believed they could help usher in societal and structural reforms promoted by the reformist political camp.
"We thought reforms represented a new paradigm, driven by individuals genuinely different and committed to change," Ahmad Batebi told RFE/RL's Radio Farda.
That the violent crackdown came during the presidency of the country's last reformist president, Mohammad Khatami -- who was elected in 1997 on promises of strengthening the rule of law and greater social freedoms -- no longer comes as a surprise.
"Time has shown that the reformists were not fundamentally different from those entrenched in power, [they were] just simply another facet of the Islamic republic," he said.
Batebi was one of thousands of reform-minded Iranian students who took to the streets after the dormitory raid in open defiance of the establishment.
When the cover of the British magazine The Economist showed him holding up the blood-stained shirt of a fellow protester who had been shot by security forces in Tehran, it awakened the outside world to the demonstrations.
But the now-iconic photo also attracted the attention of the Iranian authorities. Batebi was arrested and sentenced to death for his alleged involvement in "street unrest."
Named a prisoner of conscience by rights groups, Batebi's sentence was eventually reduced to 15 years due to international pressure. He served nine years before fleeing to neighboring Iraq while on medical leave to treat the many ailments he suffered in prison and eventually moved to the United States.
Batebi said that the Islamic republic relied on violent repression from its beginning, pointing to the mass executions of political prisoners in the 1980s and deadly crackdowns against protests in the cities of Mashhad, Qazvin, and Eslamshahr in the 1990s.
"The Islamic republic habitually employed such methods of suppression, recognizing no other approach," Batebi said.
The harsh response to the student protests of 1999 was "not unusual," Batebi added, because "the government was accustomed to and prepared for such actions, and knew no other way to operate."
Those events simply foreshadowed the establishment's method of dealing with subsequent antiestablishment protests, including student demonstrations in 2003, mass demonstrations against the results of the disputed 2009 presidential election and the suppression of the Green Movement.
"This is the inherent nature of the Islamic republic and it will continue to operate in this manner," Batebi said.
He also addressed more recent protests, including the 2019-20 protests fueled by water shortages and economic woes, and the Women, Life, Freedom protests of 2022.
As many as 1,500 demonstrators were reportedly killed during the nationwide protests that broke out in 2019. More than 550 demonstrators were killed in the crackdown against the 2022 protests, which followed the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini and lasted for months.
Human rights watchdogs say the response was marked by a litany of atrocities carried out by the state, including extrajudicial killings, torture, and rape.
Batebi said the level of suppression to which the state will go has "surpassed what was experienced at the university dormitories" in 1999, which was by far eclipsed in scale and in violence by the 2009, 2019, and 2022 protests.
But so too has the involvement of the general population, he added.
"Initially, the student movement was at the forefront of social protests, making their suppression highly visible," Batebi said. "However, over the past decade, every segment of society, from teachers to workers and nurses, has been involved."
The former student protester said he saw a "significant maturity and sophistication among today's activists" in Iran. But he laments that the reforms the students of his era fought for, including greater political and social freedoms, are essentially dead.
"From the reform movement that once sought structural changes, only a name remains," he said. "The reforms we see today are vastly different from those initial aspirations and are, in fact, part of the government, deviating slightly from its authoritarian segment while attempting to realign with the long-standing governmental ideals."
The recent victory of Masud Pezeshkian -- who cast himself as a reformist during Iran's snap presidential election after ultraconservative Ebrahim Raisi died in a helicopter crash in May -- will make no real difference, according to Batebi.
Batebi expressed doubt over Pezeshkian's "reformist" credentials, but pondered for argument's sake what could happen if he deviated from his alignment with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei or from Raisi's policies.
Even if he Pezeshkian was a "true democrat, genuinely modern, and eager to implement changes in Iran, how would he achieve this?" Batebi asked. "The tools for change are lacking in Iran. There are no institutions outside the supreme leader's control."
This includes the judiciary, media, security forces and military, the Intelligence Ministry, and all influential government bodies "that could obstruct presidential initiatives" in domestic and foreign policy.
"The situation is clear," Batebi concluded. "Regardless of an individual's democratic intentions or transformative aspirations, without the necessary instruments for change, substantial reform is unattainable. Therefore, in my view, the potential for change is virtually nonexistent."
Written by Michael Scollon based on an interview by Nasrin Afshar of RFE/RL's Radio Farda
- By RFE/RL,
- Kian Sharifi and
- Will Tizard
No Change From Iran's New President?
Masud Pezeshkian is Iran’s new president and will take office in August. He did not make lofty promises on the campaign trail, conceding that presidential powers in Iran are limited. With the supreme leader calling the shots, analysts say there will not be major policy shifts.
Wife Of Swedish-Iranian On Death Row 'Devastated' After Meeting Sweden's Foreign Minister
The wife of Ahmadreza Djalali, a Swedish-Iranian physician sentenced to death in Iran, said on July 2 that she was “devastated” after meeting Sweden’s foreign minister to discuss her husband’s case.
Vida Mehrannia has strongly criticized the Swedish government for not including Djalali in a controversial prisoner swap deal with Iran last month.
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As part of the deal, Stockholm released Hamid Nouri, an Iranian former prison official sentenced to life in prison for his role in the mass execution of political prisoners in 1988 in exchange for Swedish citizens Johan Floderus and Saeed Azizi.
“They told me, as always, that they’re pursuing the case. They say the same thing at every meeting. But after eight years and three months, still nothing has happened,” Mehrannia said after her meeting with Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom. “I am devastated.”
Djalali has been on a hunger strike since June 26 to protest against being left out of the prisoner exchange deal.
“He has a weak pulse and has stomach problems,” Mehrannia told a gathering of supporters after the meeting.
Djalali was detained in 2016 and subsequently sentenced to death for allegedly spying for Israel. He has denied all charges. Stockholm granted Djalali Swedish citizenship in 2018, though Billstrom says the authorities in Tehran consider him only to be an Iranian citizen.
The Swedish government has been under pressure by rights groups and activists for freeing Nouri and for failing to at least secure the release of the only Swedish citizen in Iran who is facing the death penalty.
Western governments and rights groups have long accused Iran of detaining dual citizens to use them as bargaining chips against the West.
At least eight other European citizens are currently held in Iran, including Jamshid Sharmahd, a German citizen of Iranian descent who has also been sentenced to death.
Iran's Supreme Court Overturns Rapper's Death Sentence
Iran's Supreme Court has overturned popular rapper Toomaj Salehi's death sentence, his lawyer said on June 22.
In April, Salehi was sentenced to death by a court in Isfahan on a new charge, "corruption on Earth," as he was serving a six-year prison sentence for his involvement in the 2022 protests that rocked Iran for months.
"As expected, the Supreme Court avoided an irreparable judicial error," Salehi's lawyer, Amir Raisian, wrote on X. "The death sentence was overturned and, based on the appeal decision of the Supreme Court, the case will be referred to a parallel branch for reconsideration."
Salehi, 33, was initially arrested in October 2022 after making public statements in support of the protests that had erupted the previous month following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died while in police custody for allegedly wearing her head scarf improperly.
After spending much of his pretrial detention in solitary confinement, he was sentenced to six years in prison but released after the Supreme Court, on appeal, found "flaws in the original sentence." His case was sent back to a lower court for reexamination and possible retrial.
He was temporarily released on bail in November after spending over a year in prison, including 252 days in solitary confinement, but then was rearrested shortly after publicly talking about his alleged torture in prison in a video.
Raisian said on June 22 that the Supreme Court also annulled the previous six-year sentence because "it is in excess of legal punishment."
Salehi gained prominence for lyrics that rail against corruption, widespread poverty, executions, and the killing of protesters in Iran.
His songs also point to a widening gap between ordinary Iranians and the country's leadership, accusing the authorities of "suffocating" the people without regard for their well-being.
The Azadi Briefing: Sharp Rise In The Number Of Afghans Executed In Iran
Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.
I'm Abubakar Siddique, senior correspondent at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.
The Key Issue
Human rights groups have documented a sharp rise in the number of Afghans executed in neighboring Iran.
At least 13 Afghans have received the death penalty in the Islamic republic so far this year, according to the Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR).
Another NGO -- the Norway-based group Hengaw, which closely tracks human rights violations in Iran -- put the number at 14.
Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the director of IHR, told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi that the number is double compared to the same period in 2023.
Amiry-Moghaddam said seven of the Afghans executed this year were convicted of murder. The rest, he said, received the death penalty over drug-related offenses.
Amiry-Moghaddam said many Afghans do not get fair trials. Thousands of Afghans are believed to be on death row in Iran.
Why It's Important: The spike in the executions comes amid a mass deportation drive targeting members of Iran's large community of Afghans.
An estimated 4.3 million Afghans currently live in Iran, according to the UN. More than 1 million have been deported in the past year.
Afghans suffer widespread abuse and discrimination in Iran, where they have often been blamed for insecurity and unemployment.
Activists have said the sharp rise in the executions of Afghans could be aimed at instilling fear in the community and discouraging other Afghans from fleeing to the Islamic republic.
An estimated 70 percent of the estimated 3.6 million Afghans who have fled their homeland after the Taliban seized power in 2021 moved to Iran.
Already one of the world's biggest executioners, Iran has intensified its use of the death penalty by carrying out at least 853 executions in 2023, a 48 percent rise from the previous year, Amnesty International said in a report released last month.
What's Next: Iranian authorities appear unlikely to significantly decrease their use of the death penalty, which rights groups say is aimed at creating fear in the population and tightening their grip on power.
As one of Iran's most marginalized and impoverished communities, Afghans are likely to continue to be the target of executions.
What To Keep An Eye On
A new World Health Organization (WHO) report says at least 25 people have died from cholera in Afghanistan so far this year.
The WHO says in 2024 there have been nearly 47,000 cases of the bacterial disease, which spreads through contaminated food and water.
Afghanistan is among the top five countries globally with the most cholera cases, alongside neighboring Pakistan, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the Congo.
The WHO says diminishing stocks of cholera vaccines as well as population growth, natural disasters, and climate change have led to cholera outbreaks.
Why It's Important: Afghanistan's heath-care system, which was propped up by foreign aid for nearly two decades, has been in crisis since the Taliban takeover. The militants' seizure of power led international donors to immediately cut financial funding.
Hundreds of health facilities have been closed in the past three years, with no funds to pay the salaries of doctors and nurses. Hospitals that are still open suffer from severe shortages of medicine.
While some foreign aid organizations continue to operate in Afghanistan, many of them have been forced to curb their work as international funding diminishes.
That's all from me for now.
Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have. You can always reach us at azadi.english@rferl.org
Until next time,
Abubakar Siddique
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Lawyer Of Executed Iranian Protester Sentenced To 6 Years For 'Propaganda Against The Regime'
The Islamic Revolutionary Court of Karaj has sentenced Amirhossein Kouhkan, a defense lawyer for the family of Mohammad Mehdi Karami, who was executed during protests over the death of Mahsa Amini that rocked Iran in 2022, to six years in prison.
Kouhkan faced several charges, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), including "assembly and collusion" and "propaganda against the regime."
Kouhkan's arrest comes after he was summoned by the Karaj intelligence department last year. He was detained at the time and held until he was granted a conditional release in December.
The charges also follow the arrest of Mashallah Karami, Mohammad Mehdi Karami's father, highlighting a pressure campaign rights groups say the government is using against those connected to protest movements in Iran.
Mohammad Mehdi Karami was one of nine individuals executed by the Islamic republic in relation to the protests of 2022, which saw widespread unrest over government policies that protesters said curbed basic human rights and intruded too deeply into the lives of most Iranians.
His execution in January 2023, which was tied to the alleged murder of a Basij militia member during the nationwide upheaval, drew international condemnation.
The cases of Kouhkan and Karami underscore the concern among Iranian authorities of the possibility of a new wave of unrest.
Following the death of Amini in September 2022, hundreds of thousands of Iranians took to the streets nationwide to protest. The 22-year-old died under mysterious circumstances while she was in police custody for an alleged head-scarf violation.
A clampdown by security forces against protesters has resulted in the deaths of approximately 600 demonstrators, as reported by human rights groups, and thousands of arrests.
The Iranian judiciary has also executed several protesters, further inflaming public outcry against the regime's harsh tactics.
Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Activists Condemn Iran-Sweden Prisoner Swap Of Convicted War Criminal Nouri
International human rights groups and activists have strongly condemned a prisoner exchange between Sweden and Iran that involved Hamid Nouri, a former Iranian prison official convicted in the Nordic country of crimes against humanity.
Nouri, who was exchanged on June 15 for Swedish nationals Johan Floderus and Saeid Azizi, returned to Iran using his alias "Hamid Abbasi," a name linked to the executions of political prisoners in 1988.
Upon his arrival in Tehran, Nouri was met with a mixed reception, a reflection on his controversial past and the contentious nature of the swap.
Floderus is a Swedish EU diplomat held in captivity for two years in Iran on espionage charges that he, the EU, and Stockholm said were fabricated. Azizi was arrested in Iran last November on what Sweden has called "wrongful grounds."
"The Swedish government has thrown dirt into the face of justice in the world by handing over a 'criminal' to the Islamic republic," said Iranian lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi, noting Nouri's conviction for gross violations of international humanitarian laws.
"This disgrace and scandal will never be forgotten," Ebadi added.
Swedish prosecutors originally detained Nouri in 2019, basing their case on the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows for the prosecution of severe crimes irrespective of location.
After a detailed and lengthy trial, Nouri was sentenced in May 2022 to life imprisonment for his role in the massacre of political prisoners during the summer of 1988.
Iran has arrested dozens of foreign and dual nationals in recent years on espionage charges that they and their governments say are groundless. Critics say Tehran uses such arbitrary detentions as part of hostage diplomacy to extract concessions from Western countries, which Tehran denies.
"The Islamic republic will take more innocent foreign and dual nationals hostage, repress people at home, and terrorize those abroad," actress and activist Nazanin Boniadi said.
"The international community needs a new approach. One that deters, not appeases the regime."
Esmat Vatanparast, who lost 11 members of her extended family during the 1988 mass executions -- including her two daughters and three brothers -- told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that "my heart broke today, tears came to my eyes, but I remain hopeful for the people of Iran" after hearing of the exchange.
The exchange was also criticized for failing to include Ahmadreza Djalali, an Iranian-Swedish researcher who has been imprisoned in Iran since 2016.
Vida Mehrannia, Djalali's wife, expressed her dismay, announcing plans to protest in front of the Swedish Foreign Ministry against the exchange, which she labeled "shameful."
Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Iranian Rapper, Activist Jailed For Political Performance
Iranian authorities have imprisoned two prominent figures from Tabriz and opened a case against another, a well-known actor and presenter, for their activism.
Milad Jalili, a rapper and singer, and Salar Taherafshar, a civil activist, both from the northwestern city of Tabriz, have been transferred to prison to commence sentences handed down earlier. They were out on bail before being summoned by authorities and subsequently detained and sent to prison.
Jalili, known artistically as "Ilshan," was sentenced to eight months for a performance supporting Azerbaijani political prisoners. Taherafshar faces six months for his role related to the same event.
Both were initially arrested in December 2023 after Jalili's performance and charged with "propaganda against the regime" by the Tabriz Revolutionary Court.
An appellate court in April upheld the conviction of Jalili, who had appealed.
Separately, in Tehran the judiciary charged popular entertainer Hossein Pakdel with "insulting" the late Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani and former President Ebrahim Raisi over a social media post in which Pakdel criticized political leaders using food metaphors.
The post, which mocked the political elite as being transformed into "rubber steaks" and "special diet cutlets." The term "cutlet" has gained a subversive edge in Iranian political discourse since Soleimani’s killing by a U.S. drone strike. It is often used to signify obliteration.
Pakdel, who has enjoyed a long career as a presenter for Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting and has also managed the Tehran auction, has been outspoken in his criticism of a crackdown on human rights.
The charge is part of a broad campaign of suppression in response to the "Women, Life, Freedom" protests in 2022, where many artists and popular cultural activists were similarly targeted.
Following the helicopter crash on May 29 that killed President Raisi, there has been a wave of arrests of social media users for insulting him. Among those arrested was Reza Babarnejad, the brother of Mehdi Babarnejad, a victim of the "Women, Life, Freedom" protests, who was detained on June 1.
Additionally, on June 4, the Kerman provincial judiciary information center announced that 254 people had been given "telephonic warnings and guidance" by the Intelligence Organization of the Revolutionary Guards, and judicial summonses were issued for eight individuals over "insulting" content.
Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Iranian Blogger Detained After Posting Only A Period In Response To Ayatollah's Picture
Hossein Shanbehzadeh, an Iranian literary editor and online activist, has been detained for unknown reasons in the northwestern city of Ardabil.
Family sources said on June 4 that Shanbehzadeh confirmed his detention in a phone call.
The case highlights ongoing tensions in Iran regarding freedom of expression, particularly on social media, and adds to the growing concern over the treatment of intellectuals and activists in the country.
Shanbehzadeh, known for his biting criticism of the authorities, said he wasn't informed of the reason for his detention, but it comes after he posted a simple period in a social media response to a tweet by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei posing with the Iranian national volleyball team.
The response went viral, garnering more likes than the original tweet by Khamenei.
Soon after, Shanbehzadeh's account on X (previously known as Twitter) was inaccessible, with his last post on it authored by someone else, according to his brother Abbas.
It's not the first time Shanbehzadeh has faced legal issues over his online activities.
In 2019, he was sentenced to prison on charges of "insulting the sanctities and the leader of the Islamic republic" for critical comments about Iran's leadership.
His professional work includes editing prominent literary works such as Naguib Mahfouz's Heritage And Life With Him, in addition to being a well-known social media activist.
Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Prison Sentences Of Iranian Women's Rights Activists Upheld On Appeal
Eleven women's rights activists cumulatively sentenced to more than 60 years in prison have lost their appeal, a lawyer for one of the campaigners said on May 29.
Ramin Safarnia said an appeals court in the northern city of Rasht on May 28 had upheld the preliminary verdicts handed to each activist. He vowed to take the case to the Supreme Court.
In a post on Instagram, activist collective Bidarzani accused the judge, Mohammad Sadeq Iran-Aqideh, of issuing the ruling "without holding a court session."
Based in the northern province of Gilan, all 11 activists were detained in August 2023 on various security-related charges, including "assembly and collusion to disrupt national security," "propaganda against the establishment," and "membership in an illegal group."
Speaking to RFE/RL's Radio Farda, a source close to the activists said the Islamic republic had increased the pressure on independent women's rights groups in the wake of the Women, Life, Freedom movement.
The movement was born out of the nationwide antiestablishment protests in 2022 following the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini, a young woman who had been detained for allegedly flouting Iran's strict dress code for women. More than 500 protesters were killed and thousands arrested during the months of unrest.
"They try to suppress [the groups] as much as they can, and they have had some success, but the resistance continues," the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Zohreh Dadras was sentenced to more than nine years in prison on two separate charges.
Forugh Sami'nia, Sara Jahani, Yasamin Hashdari, Shiva Shahsiah, Negin Rezai, Matin Yazdan, Azadeh Chavoshian, and Zahra Dadras were each handed a total of six years and three months in prison on two separate charges.
Jelveh Javaheri and Human Taheri each received a one-year sentence.
A source previously claimed to Radio Farda that the some of the activists had been "beaten and put under pressure during interrogation."
Javaid Rehman, the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, concluded in his report in March that the actions of the Iranian authorities since the 2022 protests pointed to "the possible commission of international crimes, notably the crimes against humanity of murder, imprisonment, enforced disappearances, torture, rape and sexual violence, and persecution."
Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Iranian Rights Activists Slam UN For Planning Memorial For 'Butcher' Raisi
The United Nations has announced plans to hold a memorial ceremony for the late Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, this week, sparking sharp criticism from rights activists, who decried a move to honor a man they refer to as the "Butcher of Tehran."
UN General Assembly President Dennis Francis said he will convene the tribute on May 30, with member states "encouraged" to deliver statements at the meeting "to pay tribute" to Raisi, who along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and several other officials, died in a helicopter crash on May 19.
The tribute has sparked a wave of criticism from activists who refer to Raisi's alleged role in the mass execution of political prisoners in 1988, when he was Tehran's deputy prosecutor.
In addition, they said that as president he oversaw a brutal, and sometimes deadly, crackdown on dissent during protests in Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini, who was in police custody for an alleged head-scarf violation when she died.
"When the governments of the world elevate a blatant human rights violator and butcher from Iran's history to a position of honor, as if mourning a peace-loving and democratic figure, they set a dangerous precedent," Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi wrote from her prison cell in Tehran.
The UN has already been sharply rebuked by rights groups for observing a moment of silence for Raisi on May 22, and for flying its flag at half-mast in honor of the Iranian president.
Monica Grayley, the spokeswoman for Francis, said paying tribute to the memory of a deceased head of state is a diplomatic practice.
But Iranian Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi argued that the UN's decision flies in the face of its own protocols, as Raisi was not Iran's highest-ranking official, while pointing out that a UN fact-finding mission recently said that "crimes against humanity" were committed by the Iranian regime during the crackdown on protesters in 2022.
"[Supreme Leader Ayatollah] Ali Khamenei is the highest political and military official in the Islamic republic. Whenever they die, the United Nations can hold a quadruple memorial ceremony for them along with Saddam Hussein, Muammar Gaddafi and Hitler," Ebadi said in a post on Instagram.
“I want the respected Secretary General and President of the General Assembly to recognize Ebrahim Raisi as the people of Iran called him, the 'Executioner of Iran' and the 'Butcher of Tehran' after his death.”
The UN has also implicated Iranian officials in the "physical violence" that lead to Amini's death, raising further questions over honoring Raisi at the United Nations.
A group of 23 LGBTQ+ rights organizations also issued a statement condemning the UN's actions, describing them as a "disgrace to the body of the global community."
The group said Raisi played a role in the execution and killing of members of their community and that many Iranians "consider the likes of Ebrahim Raisi among the murderers, torturers, and violators of their loved ones.”
Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
- By RFE/RL
Execution Spike In Iran Boosts Global Total To Highest In Almost A Decade, Amnesty Says
Executions around the globe rose to their highest number in almost a decade, spurred by a spike in cases of the death penalty being carried out in Iran, according to a new report by watchdog Amnesty International.
In the report, released on May 29, Amnesty said a total of 1,153 executions took place in 2023 -- not including the thousands believed to have been carried out in China -- marking an increase of more than 30 percent from 2022.
In particular, Amnesty highlighted Iran, where the authorities intensified their use of the death penalty "to instill fear in the population and tighten their grip on power" by carrying out at least 853 executions, a 48 percent rise from the previous year.
"The huge spike in recorded executions was primarily down to Iran. The Iranian authorities showed complete disregard for human life and ramped up executions for drug-related offenses, further highlighting the discriminatory impact of the death penalty on Iran's most marginalized and impoverished communities," said Agnes Callamard, Amnesty International's secretary-general.
"Despite the setbacks that we have seen this year, particularly in the Middle East, countries that are still carrying out executions are increasingly isolated. Our campaigning against this abhorrent punishment works. We will continue until we have put an end to the death penalty."
Amnesty chided Iran for the high number of executions -- at least 545 -- that were carried out "unlawfully" for acts such as drug-related offenses that under international law are not punishable by the death penalty.
The rights group said executions "disproportionately impacted" Iran's Baluch ethnic minority, who accounted for 20 percent of recorded executions even though they make up only around 5 percent of Iran’s population.
At least 24 women and at least five people who were children at the time they are accused of committing a crime were executed, the Amnesty report said.
Despite the higher overall total of executions, Amnesty said progress on stopping the usage of the death penalty was made.
Executions were carried out in only 16 countries last year, it said, the lowest total ever recorded.
Belarus, Japan, Myanmar, and South Sudan, all of which carried out executions in 2022, did not register any last year, Amnesty said.
"The inherent discrimination and arbitrariness that marks the use of the death penalty have only compounded the human rights violations of our criminal justice systems. The small minority of countries that insist on using it must move with the times and abolish the punishment once and for all," Callamard said.
- By RFE/RL's Radio Farda,
- Babak Ghafooriazar and
- AP
Film Director Flees Iran On Foot, Receives Standing Ovation At Cannes
The Iranian film director Mohammad Rasoulof has received a special jury award and a 12-minute standing ovation after his new film was screened at the Cannes Film Festival. Rasoulof spoke to RFE/RL at the festival about how he escaped Iran on foot through a secret mountainous route just weeks earlier to avoid an eight-year prison sentence.
- By RFE/RL's Radio Farda and
- Will Tizard
Iran Mourns -- And Celebrates -- President's Death
The death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has led to official mourning in the country, but other Iranians celebrated the passing of a man who oversaw a brutal crackdown on anti-government protests after a young woman, Mahsa Amini, died in police custody in 2022.
- By RFE/RL
Award-Winning Filmmaker Flees Iran After Flogging, Prison Sentence
Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof on May 13 said he had left Iran in secret after being informed that he had been sentenced to flogging and eight years in prison on security-related charges.
Rasoulof, who has been convicted of "collusion to act against national security," said in a statement that he had left for Europe days earlier.
His statement was released by Films Boutique and Parallel45, who are distributing his latest film, The Seed Of The Sacred Fig.
The director has been under pressure from the Iranian authorities to pull the film from the Cannes Film Festival, which will kick off this week.
News of his recent sentence was made public last week but he said he knew about it a month ago.
"I didn't have much time to make a decision. I had to choose between prison and leaving Iran. With a heavy heart, I chose exile," Rasoulof wrote.
Separately, he posted a short video to Instagram of an undisclosed mountainous location and wrote that he would talk about his journey out of Iran later.
The filmmaker's passport was confiscated in 2017 and he was barred from leaving the country. He was jailed in June 2022 and was released in February 2023 as part of a mass amnesty.
The cast and crew of The Seed Of The Sacred Fig have been under pressure, and Rasoulof said many had been "put through lengthy interrogations" and are potentially facing prosecution.
"During the interrogations of the film crew, the intelligence forces asked them to pressure me to withdraw the film from the Cannes Festival," he said.
The plot of The Seed Of The Sacred Fig had been kept under wraps until earlier this month it was reported that it tells the story of an Iranian judge struggling with paranoia.
His mistrust intensifies after his gun goes missing amid growing nationwide protests. He suspects his wife and daughters of stealing his weapon and imposes heavy restrictions at home.
Rasoulof won the Berlin Film Festival’s top prize in 2020 for his film There Is No Evil, which tells four stories loosely connected to the themes of the death penalty in Iran and personal freedoms under oppression.
"We are very happy and much relieved that Mohammad has safely arrived in Europe after a dangerous journey," wrote Jean-Christophe Simon, CEO of Films Boutique and Parallel45.
"We hope he will be able to attend the Cannes premiere of The Seed Of The Sacred Fig in spite of all attempts to prevent him from being there in person."
- By Kian Sharifi
No Veil, No Sale: Iran Links Pharmacies' Drug Quotas To Hijab Compliance
Iran has fined and shut down scores of businesses for allegedly flouting the country’s controversial hijab law in recent years.
Among them were pharmacies accused of failing to impose the Islamic head scarf on their female staff and customers.
Now, in their latest attempt to encourage compliance, the authorities have said that pharmacies could receive reduced drug quotas if they do not adhere to the hijab requirement.
A new directive issued by the Health Ministry on May 5 directly links a pharmacy’s compliance with the hijab law to its allocation of medicine. A chronic drug shortage has forced the authorities to allocate medicine among thousands of pharmacies across the country.
The move has been widely mocked in Iran, where some have criticized the clerical establishment for politicizing people's access to medicine.
'Deterrent Measures'
Heydar Mohammadi, head of Iran’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA), said on May 5 that pharmacies are obliged to ensure “proper attire” is observed on their premises.
“Compliance with [dress] norms is among the issues that play a role in pharmacies’ quotas,” said Mohammadi, a deputy health minister, during a public forum in the capital, Tehran.
The exact details of the directive are unclear. But Mohammadi said reduced quotas are among the “deterrent measures” used to ensure pharmacies followed the hijab law.
“If those measures do not work, violators will be prosecuted,” he added.
In an apparent attempt at damage control, the FDA in a May 6 statement accused the media of misrepresenting the deputy health minister’s comments. It added that the issue of attire pertained to the “professional outfits” worn by the pharmacies’ staff.
An FDA official, who spoke to RFE/RL’s Radio Farda on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, said there were “too many” pharmacies in the country and the Health Ministry was struggling to distribute enough medicine to them.
'Entirely Illegal'
The FDA’s statement has done little to stem the tide of criticism.
U.S.-based legal analyst Pegah Banihashemi said the decision to link pharmacies’ drug quotas to compliance with the hijab law “is entirely illegal” and a violation of people’s rights.
“Patients who need to procure medicine will become victims of an illegal action by the Health Ministry,” she wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Sadra Mohaqeq, a pro-reformist journalist, accused the authorities of taking people’s health “hostage.”
Hamed Bidi, head of Karzar Net, an online petition website, said the measure amounts to a “crime against humanity.”
Tehran-based activist Reza Saliani posted on X an imaginary conversation between a customer and a pharmacist, who said that he does not have a particular drug because “we don’t have enough hijabs to afford it.”
Hijab Crackdown
The authorities have intensified their enforcement of the hijab since monthslong nationwide antiestablishment protests rocked the country in 2022.
The unprecedented demonstrations were triggered by the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was accused of improperly wearing her head scarf. During the protests, women and girls removed and burned their hijabs.
As an increasing number of women flout the hijab rules, officials have threatened violators with hefty fines and imprisonment.
The authorities have also shut down scores of businesses, including retail stores, restaurants, and pharmacies, for failure to comply with the hijab law.
Last month, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) established a new unit in Tehran to enforce Islamic dress codes amid a fresh crackdown on women not wearing the head scarf.
Kianush Farid of RFE/RL’s Radio Farda contributed to this report.
Iranian Activist Sentenced To Death For Social Media Posts
A court in the central Iranian city of Isfahan has sentenced Mahmud Mehrabi to death for posting messages on social media critical of the Islamic republic.
There is scant reporting about the details of his critical posts, which led to him being convicted of “corruption on Earth” -- the most serious offense under Iran’s Islamic penal code.
Mehrabi’s lawyer, Babak Farsani, wrote on social media on May 5 that there were “serious problems” with the verdict that he hoped would help get it overturned by the Supreme Court.
Mehrabi was arrested in February 2023 and has spent the last six months in a prison ward where dangerous criminals are held, according to his sister Hajar Mehrabi, who lives in Austria.
She told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda on May 5 that her brother was among the tens of thousands of people who protested during the Women, Life, Freedom unrest in 2022. The protests were sparked by the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini, who had been detained for allegedly not properly observing Iran’s strict dress code for women.
Mehrabi put out calls for protests on his social media account and was accused of “spreading false news,” his sister said.
“The judge told him, ‘I don’t see regret in your eyes, so I have sentenced you to death’,” she added.
The “corruption on Earth” charge is usually brought against serious crimes, such as murder, drug dealing, and high-profile financial corruption cases. It remains unclear exactly what Mehrabi posted online to be hit with a charge that carries the death penalty.
Maryam Mehrabi, another sister who resides in Iran, has urged the public to gather outside the home of Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Nasseri on May 6 to protest the verdict. Nasseri is a prominent cleric in Isfahan who teaches in the city’s seminary.
She vowed to set herself on fire outside Nasseri’s residence.
This comes just over a week after another court in Isfahan sentenced popular rapper Toomaj Salehi to death for his antiestablishment songs.
Rights groups have sharply criticized Iranian authorities for their extensive use of the death penalty.
"The Iranian authorities are ruthlessly carrying out an execution spree. Prisons across the country have become sites of mass state-sanctioned killings under the guise of judicial executions," Amnesty International said recently.