Iran: Families plea for the release of loved ones on death row
Iran: Families plea for the release of loved ones on death row
A rare protest took place outside an Iranian courthouse this week as families of individuals sentenced to death row pleaded for the release of their loved ones.
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Iran is a profile executor, according to a report by Amnesty International released earlier this year [source: Getty]
Families of death row inmates in Iran gathered for a rare protest outside the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Karaj this week to plea for the release of their loved ones.
A video on social media showed a group of male and female protesters carrying placards saying “stop executions” outside the Iranian courthouse. A woman can be seen wailing at a security official.
At least 16 prisoners sentenced to death have been transferred to solitary confinement from Karaj, Minab and Gohardasht central prisons to different parts of Iran, according to the Iran Human Rights Society.
Relatives of the demonstrators were formerly imprisoned in Karaj and Ghezelhesar, human rights organisations have said.
"The families of prisoners under sentence…shout in front of the court: ‘Do not execute! Even in Afghanistan, they do not execute! Do not execute!'," tweeted the Iran Human Rights Society.
A later video shared by opposition group the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran showed a line of female and male protesters outside "the regime’s judiciary" also carrying placards
Iran is one of the world’s most prolific executors, according to a report by Amnesty International published in May.
The number of executions jumped from at least 246 in 2020 to at least 314 in 2021, a 28 percent increase.
At least 388 executions have been recorded in Iran so far this year, according to the Iran Human Rights Organisation.
Executions in Iran are often carried out in secret and families are not able to see or bury the bodies afterwards.
A large number of death sentences are linked to drug-related offences. However, Tehran’s theocracy has a ruthless reputation for cracking down on political dissent and carrying out grossly unfair trials.
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