Past week: executions in Iran

Posted on | mei 16, 2011 | No Comments

8 May

Disturbing reports from Ahvaz: 9 executed among them one minor- IHR demands international investigations

According to the reports from Iran nine people, among them one minor, have been executed in the city of Ahvaz south of Iran.

According to the Persian section of Alarabiya (the news website of Alarabiya TV channel), Iran’s Judiciary has announced that nine people charged with murder of the security officers and committing acts against chastity, have been executed.

Quoting the website Ahvaz news, Alarabiya reported that three of the men were hanged in public in Ahvaz, while the other six were hanged inside the prison of Ahvaz. According to these reports one of those hanged in the prison was 16 years old.

According to Ahvaz news the nine men executed were identified as follows:

Three brothers identified as Ali Heydari (25), Jasem Heydari (23) and Naser Heydari (23) were hanged in public in the Hamidiyeh area west of Ahvaz. The executions took place on Thursday May 5th according to the report.

Six others who were hanged inside the Karoun prison of Ahvaz were identified as Amir Moavi, Ali Na’ami, Amir Badvi, Ahmad Naseri (22) and Hashem Hamidi (16 years).

All those executed had been arrested in connection to the unrests in April 2011 in Ahvaz, where several people had been killed in clashes between the security forces and the inhabitants of an Arab neighborhood in Ahvaz.

Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the spokesperson of the Iran Human Rights urged the world community and the United Nations to conduct an independent investigation on the reports regarding the executions and unrest in Ahvaz.

11 May

Eight people were hanged in western Iran yesterday

Eight people were hanged in the towns of Oroumieh and Miandoab, in west of Iran, yesterday May 9th.

According to the official Iranian news agency IRNA, three people were hanged in the prison of Miandoab. Quoting the prosecutor of Miandoab the report said: “Three men, two of them from Oroumieh and one from Miandoab, were hanged in the prison of Miandoab yesterday morning”. They were convicted of drug trafficking said the report without mentioning their names and other details regarding their charges.

The Kurdish news agency Moukarian identified two of the men as “Fathollah Darvishi” and “Fekri Teymori”.

According to the “Human Rights Activists News Agency” (HRANA) five men were hanged in the prison of Oroumieh yesterday morning May 9th. They were also convicted of drug related offences according to the report.

According to the Koukarian news agency three of the men were identified as “Aref Rashidpour”, Esfandiar Mondahaki” and “Teymor Ayoubian”.

Iranian state media have not announced the executions in Orumieh.

12 May

A man will be punished by dripping acid into his eyes in Tehran on Saturday May 14- Norway condemns the punishment

Acid will be dripped into the eyes of an Iranian man sentenced by a court in Tehran to qesas (retribution) on Saturday May 14th.

According to reports from the Iranian media Majid Movahedi who was sentenced to retribution by blindness in both eyes after he in 2004 blinded Ameneh Bahrami, the woman who spurned his marriage proposals, will be punished at Dadgostari hospital of Tehran on Saturday. According to these reports Ameneh herself is going to drip acid into Majid’s eyes and there will be specialists present to conduct the punishment if Ameneh denies doing so.

A court in the Iranian capital Tehran sentenced Majid to “blindness in both eyes” by dripping ten drops of sulphuric acid into his eyes, in November 2008.

The sentence was approved by the Iranian Supreme Court in February 2009.

Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the spokesperson of Iran Human Rights (IHR) strongly condemned what he called a barbaric and grotesque punishment and said:”The international community must not let this barbaric punishment happen”. He added:”Leaders of the Iranian regime should be held responsible for the barbaric and grotesque punishment of dripping acid in Majid’s eyes. By letting Ameneh conduct the punishment the Iranian authorities want to put the blame for this inhumane act on her shoulder”.

Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam asked the doctors to denie taking part in the barbaric punishment and said that by doing so they will be breaking their professional oath.

Commenting the discriminatory laws against the women in Iran, Amiry-Moghaddam said:”By being a woman, Ameneh is also a victim of the Iranian regime’s gender apartheid politics. Iranian authorities encourage violence against the women. According to the Iranian laws a woman who is not covered properly can be lashed up to 74 times, so the authorities are also responsible for the growing violence against the women in the Iranian society, as in Ameneh’s case”.

Norway condemns the punishment:

Norwegian government condemned the punishment of dripping acid in the eyes.

State Secretary Ms. gry Larsen,said in a statement:

Blinding with acid is a cruel punishment procedure that is not worthy of a civilized society, “.

The statement says: Punishment method is clearly a violation of both Iran’s international obligations, including the prohibition against torture. The fact that the victim himself to carry out the punishment in violation of the principle that criminal conduct is the state’s responsibility. The doctors attending the punishment is also a clear violation of medical ethics principles. It is not known to be blinding with acid has been used as a method of punishment in the past.

- We will strongly encourage Iran to stop the implementation of such an inhuman punishment, “says the State secretary Larsen.

Background:

Majid Movahedi is convicted of pouring acid on the face of Ameneh Bahrami (27), a girl with whom he allegedly wished to marry. This happened in 2004.

As a result of the injuries Ameneh lost the sight on one eye and most of the sight on the other eye. Ameneh has been going through several surgical operations on her face and eyes.

In 2008, a court in Tehran sentenced Majid to eye for eye retribution. He was sentenced to lose the sight in both his eyes as well as economic compensation to Ameneh.

Iranian Supreme Court approved the sentence in February 2009. According to the sentence issued by the court, ten drops of acid sulphuric will be dripped into each of Majid’s eyes!

The punishment will be conducted on Saturday May 14th.

13 May

British government urged the Iranian authorities to commute the inhumane punishment- Less than 24 hours to the punishment of blinding a man with acid in Tehran

With less than 24 hours left to the inhumane punishment of blinding a man by dripping acid into his eyes in Tehran, and one day after the Norwegian government condemned the punishment, The British government urged the Iranian authorities to halt the sentence.

According to the Guardian the British Foreign Office urged Iran to halt the sentence. “The attack on Ameneh Bahrami in 2004 was a horrific crime,” a spokesman said. “However, we are deeply concerned by reports that Majid Movahedi’s sentence of being blinded by having acid dripped into his eyes may be carried out”.

“The FCO calls on the Iranian authorities to commute this inhumane punishment to an appropriate sentence in line with Iran’s international obligations and to cease the practice of corporal punishment for crimes” says the statement.

Majid Movahedi was in 2009 sentenced by a Tehran court to be blinded by dripping 10 drops of sulphuric acid in both eyes, convicted of pouring acid into the face of Ameneh Bahrami in 2004.

Ameneh Bahrami is supposed to conduct the punishment but there will be “specialists” present ready to take over.

Iran Human Rights group has strongly condemned the retribution verdict. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the spokesperson of IHR said in a statement: “The international community must not let this barbaric punishment to happen. Leaders of the Iranian regime should be held responsible for the grotesque punishment of dripping acid in Majid’s eyes. By letting Ameneh conduct the punishment the Iranian authorities want to put the blame for this inhumane act on her shoulders,” he said.

The Norwegian government has also taken quick action by issuing a statement yesterday to condemn the imminent punishment. “Blinding with acid is a cruel punishment procedure that is not worthy of a civilized society. We strongly encourage Iran to stop the implementation of such an inhuman punishment,” said Norwegian State Secretary Gry Larsen.

14 May

The “eye for an eye” punishment of a man in Tehran has been postponed

The “eye for an eye” punishment of Majid Movahedi, that was scheduled at a Tehran hospital at 1200 noon today, has been postponed due to unknown reasons.

According to the state run Iranian news agency ISNA the decision of postponing the punishment was issued late Friday night by the authorities. The reason for the postponement was not clear but the report underlined that the “punishment” has only been postponed and not stopped.

Ms. Ameneh Bahrami who was originally conduct the punishment , wasn’t aware that the punishment was postponed this morning.

The punishment of dripping acid in the eyes of Majid Movahedi has been condemned by the human rights groups in the world and several countries such as Norway, UK and Belgium have urged the Iranian authorities to halt the inhumane punishment.

Iran Human Rights (IHR) urge the world community to do what they can to stop this inhumane punishment. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the spokesperson of IHR, said: The punishment has just been temporary postponed and could happen at any time.

14 May

Public hangings: Four people were hanged in the central Iranian town of Yazd

Four men were hanged in the central Iranian city of Yazd early this morning, reported the state run Iranian news agency Fars.

According to the report three of the men were hanged in public and the fourth person was hanged inside the prison.

None of the men were identified by name, but according to the report they were all convicted of rape

14 May

Four people were hanged in southeastern Iran

Four people were hanged in the prison of Kerman, in south-east of Iran, on Thursday May 12th.

According to the official site of the Judiciary in Kerman the four persons executed were: “A. A.” convicted of carrying 8500 grams of heroin, “N. B.” for carrying 5800 grams of crack, “N.D.” for carrying 4870 grams of heroin and “A.B.” for carrying 20000 vials of Norgesic.

The charges have not been confirmed by independent sources.

AUTHOR: Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam
URL: http://iranhr.net/
E-MAIL: amirymoghaddam [at] gmail.com