Iranian justice announced three new death sentences on Monday, 48 hours after the execution of two protesters, which provoked a new strong wave of international indignation.
The three convicted protesters, along with the two men executed on Saturday, were arrested in the context of protests sparked in mid-September by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained for breaching the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code.
Tehran calls the protests “riots” and says they are encouraged by countries and organizations hostile to Iran. According to Tehran, hundreds of people — including members of the security forces — have been killed and thousands of protesters arrested.
According to Mizan Online, the body of the judiciary, Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kazemi and Saïd Yaghoubi, accused of being involved in the deaths of three members of the security forces during demonstrations in the province of Isfahan on November 16, 2022 , were sentenced to death at first instance.
They were found guilty of moharebeh (war against God, in Persian), the agency said.
“Stealing Life”
On Saturday, Iran announced the execution of two men convicted of killing a paramilitary during the protests.
This double execution aroused strong disapproval in the world.
Denouncing the “brutal repression of courageous Iranian voices”, the Canadian government announced on Monday a new salvo of sanctions against Iranian organizations and officials accused of being accomplices of the regime.
“Canada stands in solidarity with the Iranian people, who continue to suffer serious violations of their most fundamental human rights,” said Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly.
“Stealing the lives of people who demonstrate peacefully is heinous,” White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan reacted to Washington, condemning “the Iranian government’s brutal repression against its own people”.
For his part, the head of British diplomacy, James Cleverly, announced that he had “summoned” the Iranian charge d’affaires on Monday to condemn “in the strongest terms the heinous executions this weekend”. “The Iranian regime must end its brutal repression and start listening to the concerns of its people.”
The Quai d’Orsay announced for its part that it would summon the Iranian charge d’affaires on Monday “to signify to him” its “strongest condemnation” of the executions and repression.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock announced on Monday that she had summoned the Iranian ambassador to Berlin “again” to protest against these executions, which “will not remain without consequences”.
The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also summoned the Iranian ambassador to Oslo, saying it “strongly condemns” these acts.
Austria also summoned Iran’s Ambassador, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg, “strongly” condemning the executions and saying on Twitter that his country “rejects the death penalty under all circumstances.” »
Canada stands in solidarity with the Iranian people, who continue to suffer serious violations of their most basic human rights
A senior diplomat of the European Union, Stefano Sannino, for his part called on Tehran to stop “immediately imposing and carrying out death sentences against demonstrators”, calling for “cancel the recent death sentences without delay”.
Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands had also announced that they would summon Iranian ambassadors in response to the death by hanging of the two men, aged 22 and 39 according to NGOs. A wave of indignant reactions also followed.
Pope Francis has called for the abolition of capital punishment in Iran and the rest of the world which “only fuels the thirst for revenge”.
” Treason “
The new death sentences bring to 17 the number of people sentenced to death in connection with the protest in Iran, according to a count established by Agence France-Presse (AFP) from official announcements.
Among them, four were executed and two had their sentences upheld by the Supreme Court. The others await new trials or may appeal.
At least 109 protesters currently in detention face charges carrying the death penalty, Oslo-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) said on Monday.
In a message on Twitter, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called on Tehran to immediately stop “all executions”.
According to Amnesty International, Iran is the country that executes the most people sentenced to death outside of China.
For Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, “responsible institutions treat treason seriously and fairly”.
Detained in Tehran since the end of September, the daughter of ex-president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has been sentenced to five years in prison for incitement to demonstrate, her lawyer told AFP on Monday.
With The Canadian Press