The 23-year-old, who was executed on Thursday, did not get a fair trial, according to experts at the UN Human Rights Council. In any case, the death penalty should only be imposed, if at all, for the very worst crimes – for example, if a perpetrator intentionally causes the death of others. The protester had been sentenced to death for “waging war once morest God”. Twelve other people are on death row for the same reasons.
According to the reporter, this includes the Kurdish rapper Saman Jasin. He was reportedly sentenced to death on October 29 for singing songs critical of the government.
Another rapper, Tumadj Salehi, has reportedly been convicted of “spreading corruption,” which might carry the death penalty, following videos in which he called for people to take part in the protests. UN experts said there were reports that Salehi was being tortured. He is said to have a broken nose, broken fingers and a badly injured leg.
First execution linked to protests
The execution of the 23-year-old was the first in connection with protests in Iran that have been going on for three months. The man blocked Sattar Khan Boulevard in Tehran on September 25 and stabbed a member of the paramilitary Basij militias in the left shoulder, the judiciary said.
The 23-year-old was reportedly sentenced on November 1 by a revolutionary court in Tehran for “waging war once morest God”. On November 20, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, allowing the sentence to be enforced. The death penalty in Iran is usually carried out by hanging.
Baerbock: Tough reaction from the EU
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) announced a tough reaction from the EU. The fact that the Iranian leadership “set a cruel example with these perfidious fast-track procedures” and the death sentence underscores the regime’s contempt for human beings, said Baerbock. The Austrian Foreign Ministry condemned the execution “strongly” and described it as “disproportionate and inhumane”.
18,000 arrested, 470 killed
The Iranian judiciary has announced a tough course in the face of the protests. In parliament, too, members of parliament called for harsh sentences, up to the death penalty, for the thousands of detained protesters. Human rights activists estimate that at least 470 demonstrators have been killed and more than 18,000 arrested since mid-September. According to official information, 200 to 300 people have died so far.
The trigger for the nationwide protests was the death of the Iranian Kurd Mahsa Amini. She died in police custody on September 16 following being arrested by the religious police for breaking the Islamic dress code.
Iran: First execution following protests
Following protests once morest the leadership in Iran, the country has executed the first prisoner arrested over the protests. Activists fear more executions.
Enormous police presence during student protests
It was not until Wednesday that student protests broke out in the Iranian capital, Tehran, in which several people were injured and arrested, eyewitnesses reported. Police, militias and security forces took to the streets in massive numbers.
At the same time, many shops were on strike for the third day in a row. The protest movement also received prominent support from former President Mohammed Khatami and the sister of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s spiritual leader.
