Iran executes two men over protests

Iranian authorities announced on Saturday the execution by hanging of two men convicted of having killed a paramilitary during the demonstrations sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, a decision that drew international condemnation.

The UN denounced these hangings, which bring to four the number of executions since the start of the protest movement in Iran in mid-September.

“Mohammed Mahdi Karami Y Seyed Mohammad Hosseinithe main perpetrators of the crime that led to the martyrdom of Ruhollah Ajamian, were hanged in the morning” on Saturday, reported Mizan Online, the information agency of the judiciary.

The two men were accused of killing this member of the paramilitary Basij militia, affiliated with the Guardians of the Revolutionon November 3 in Karaj, a city west of Tehran.

The trial court sentenced them to death on 4 December. The verdict was confirmed on January 3 by the Supreme Court of Iran, a process described as “expedited” by the NGOs defending human rights.

The European Union was “dismayed” by the executionsindicated this Saturday in a statement Nabila Massrali, spokesman for the head of community diplomacy, the Spanish Josep Borrel.

The EU “once again calls on the Iranian authorities to immediately end the highly condemnable practice of issuing and carrying out death sentences against protesters,” the spokesperson said.

Desperation of a father

Since the beginning of the demonstrations, Justice sentenced 14 people linked to these protests to deathaccording to a count of the AFP based on official information.

Of them, four have been executed, another two received a confirmation of the sentence by the Supreme Court, six await a new process and two can appeal the decision.

Activists in the country say that another dozen people face charges that can carry the death penalty.

The Islamic Republic has been rocked by a protest movement following the death on September 16 of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who had been detained for violate the dress codewhich includes the use of the veil.

Iranian officials denounce “riots”, fueled by foreign countries and opposition groups, they say, and say hundreds of people have been killed in the clashes, including members of the security forces.

The executions on Saturday come despite a campaign by NGOs calling on Tehran to pardon Mohammad Mahdi Karami and Seyed Mohammad Hosseini. Amnesty International denounced an “unfair” process.

In mid-December, Mohammad Mahdi’s father, Mashallah Karami, posted a video on social media imploring the authorities to quash the death sentence against his son.

The lawyer, Mohammad Aghasi, wrote on Twitter that Karami was unable to reunite with his family before his execution.

According to the group Iran Human Rights (IHR), based in Norway, Karami was 22 years old and, according to NGOs, Hosseini, 39 years old.

“Mock process”

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights denounced this Saturday trials “based on extorted confessions.” “It is shocking that Iran continues to execute protesters, despite international outrage”, the agency said on Twitter.

IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said the two had been “subjected to torture and sentenced after a mock trial” and called for “tougher sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities.”

Tehran has already been subject to a series of international sanctions such as reaction to the repression against the demonstrations.

Likewise, the Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, announced on Saturday that he had appointed Ahmad-Reza Radan as the new head of the national police.

In 2010, the US Treasury Department blacklisted Ahmad-Reza Radan for violating human rights, following the controversial re-election of ultra-conservative President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, which led to major protests suppressed by power. That same year, he was sanctioned by the European Union. (YO)