The UN Special Rapporteur, Professor Javaid Rehman, calls for effective accountability for deaths in recent protests in Iran. In his latest report, Rehman highlighted that arbitrary deprivation of life extended not only to excessive use of force but also to places of detention.[1]
In the report, titled Situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Rehman emphasises his concern about the high number of death penalty sentences in the Islamic Republic of Iran and the alarming increase in the number of executions observed since 2021.[2] As he points out, there is “a lack of official data on the total number of death sentences imposed and the number of executions carried out”. [3]
The Special Rapporteur notes with concern the correlation in time between the increase in executions and large-scale protests. The presented in the report are very alarming, and include executions of child offenders: “on the basis of available and verified information, in 2021 at least 330 people were executed, including at least two child offenders and 10 women. By comparison, in 2020 at least 267 people were executed, including at least four child offenders. Between 1 January and 30 June 2022, at least 251 people were executed, including at least six women and five Afghan citizens, representing double the numbers executed in the first six months of 2021” – we read in the report.
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Reported by
Dr Eliza Kania (Journal Manager and Research Communications Officer)
eliza.kania@brunel.ac.uk