Zahra Sedighi Hamedani, 31, and Elham Chubdar, 24, were convicted in a court in the northwest of the country after being accused of promoting homosexuality.
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France has “deplored” Wednesday, September 7 the death sentence in Iran of two lesbians and LGBTQ activists, revealed by an association for the defense of human rights earlier this week. “France recalls its constant opposition, in all places and in all circumstances, to the death penalty”, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. Paris also recalls “his firm commitment to the universal decriminalization of homosexuality and the defense of the rights of LGBT+ people”.
Zahra Sedighi Hamedani, 31, and Elham Chubdar, 24, were sentenced by a court in the northwestern city of Urmia, the Kurdish human rights organization “Hengaw” reported on Monday. They were sentenced for “corruption on earth”, the most serious charge in the Iranian penal code. According to the Iranian LGBTQ rights organization “6Rang”, headquartered in Germany, this is the first time that women have been sentenced to death because of their sexual orientation.
Human rights defenders accuse Iran of currently carrying out a wave of repression affecting all sections of society. These activists denounce in particular arrests targeting the Baha’i (non-Muslim) religious minority, the increase in the number of executions in this country and the arrest of foreign nationals.