Berlin (AFP) – Germany and the European Union issued a powerful denunciation on Tuesday of Iran’s execution of Jamshid Sharmahd, a 69-year-old German-Iranian dissident, who had spent years imprisoned under harsh conditions. Both entities warned of potential retaliatory measures in light of this egregious act of injustice.
Issued on: 29/10/2024 – 12:28Modified: 29/10/2024 – 12:26
Chancellor Olaf Scholz characterized the execution of Sharmahd on Monday as a “scandal,” emphasizing the gravity of the situation, while Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock harshly criticized Iran’s “inhumane regime,” indicating that there will be “serious consequences” for these actions. Berlin also took diplomatic action by summoning Iran’s charge d’affaires to deliver a “strong protest against the actions of the Iranian regime.” Furthermore, the German ambassador to Tehran, in a show of disapproval, was recalled to Berlin for urgent consultations with government officials.
The German foreign ministry stated that Berlin “reserved the right to take further measures” in response to Iran’s actions, underscoring the severity of their stance. The EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, reiterated this commitment by denouncing Sharmahd’s “killing in the strongest possible terms,” revealing that the European bloc is also weighing its own measures in light of the incident.
Jamshid Sharmahd, a German citizen of Iranian descent and a resident of the United States, was a trained software engineer who contributed to an Iranian opposition group’s website, which was critical of the Islamic Republic’s leadership. He was apprehended by Iranian authorities in 2020 while traveling through the United Arab Emirates, a move that his family has since denounced as a politically motivated act of repression. Iran accused Sharmahd of being involved in a deadly 2008 mosque bombing and sentenced him to death in February 2023 for what was labeled as “corruption on Earth.” The Iranian judiciary’s Mizan news agency reported that “the death sentence of Jamshid Sharmahd… was carried out this morning,” solidifying the fears held by his family and supporters regarding his fate. Sharmahd’s family has consistently maintained his innocence, positioning him as a victim of a politically charged legal system.
His daughter, Gazelle, publicly called for confirmation from the German and U.S. governments regarding her father’s fate, emphasizing the need for “concrete proof” that he had been killed. She insisted that, should this be confirmed, his body must be repatriated “immediately” and that the Iranian government must face “severe punishment” for its actions.
‘Show trial’
Rights group Amnesty International condemned Sharmahd’s execution, calling it “the cruel end of a process that can only be described as a show trial.” They argue that “these actions show once again that the systematic abuse of fundamental human rights is anchored in the workings of the Iranian judicial system.” The organization urged the German government to issue “arrest warrants against all Iranian officials who participated in the crime against Jamshid Sharmahd.” Baerbock remarked that the case highlights a chilling reality: “no one is safe under the new government” of President Masoud Pezeshkian, inaugurated in July.
According to Amnesty International, Iran maintains the grim distinction of carrying out the second highest number of executions globally, only trailing behind China.
At least 627 individuals have been executed this year in Iran, based on reports from the Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights. Rights advocates accuse Iranian authorities of employing capital punishment as a mechanism to instill fear throughout society. Moreover, several other Europeans are presently detained in Iran, including at least three French citizens, raising further concerns about the safety of foreign nationals in the country. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights, characterized Sharmahd’s execution as “a case of extrajudicial killing of a hostage aimed at covering up the recent failures of the hostage-takers of the Islamic Republic.”