At least 24 people arrested in Iran face execution for their involvement in anti-government protests that have swept the nation as protesters demand women’s rights.
Iranian newspaper Etemad reportedly published on Friday a list complied with by judicial authorities accusing 25 protesters of “waging war against God” – a charge to which 23-year-old Mohsen Shekari was found guilty before being hanged on Thursday.
Shekari’s name was also on the list.
FILE – In this photo taken by an individual not employed by The Associated Press and obtained by the AP outside Iran, Iranians protest the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after she was arrested by morality police, in Tehran, October 1, 2022.
(The Associated Press)
IRAN EXECUTES FIRST PROTESTANT SINCE NATIONAL WOMEN’S RIGHTS DEMONSTRATIONS START
Authorities have signaled that there will be more executions, local news reported.
The United Nations condemned the 23-year-old’s execution and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said it was “clearly designed to send a chilling effect to the rest of the protesters”.
“We will also follow the authorities on this,” he said.
“I can only… call on the authorities to immediately institute a moratorium on the death penalty, to release those arrested in connection with the protests and to work towards the abolition of the death penalty,” he added.
A person in the Cypriot capital Nicosia checks a mobile phone on December 8, 2022, displaying a Tweet about the hanging by Iranian authorities of Mohsen Shekari. – Iran has hanged Mohsen Shekarimer after he was convicted of wounding a member of the paramilitary forces, the judiciary said, the first known execution it has carried out in nearly three months of protests.
(AFP via Getty Images)
FUTURE OF IRANIAN MORALITY POLICE UNCLEAR AFTER OFFICIAL COMMENT
Thousands of people have taken to the streets across Iran for months after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was killed while in police custody in September.
Amini’s death garnered world attention after she was arrested and beaten by Iran’s Morale Police for wearing the hijab incorrectly before succumbing to her injuries.
Since then, women have abandoned the hijab and cut their hair short in protest against the oppressive practices of Khamenei’s regime.
Tehran has aggressively cracked down on protesters, and according to some reports, more than 18,000 people have been arrested for protesting.
The Iran Journal reported this week that some women were threatened with sexual assault after being arrested and interrogated by Iranian security forces.
Iranians protest the death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, after she was arrested by the morality police, in Tehran on September 20, 2022.
(AP Photo/Middle East Images, File)
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Others have disappeared or have been found dead after being arrested.
At least 481 protesters have been killed according to activist news agency HRANA as of Friday, even as demonstrations continue.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
