Over 150 international figures, including Nobel laureates, human rights experts, and NGOs, have issued an urgent letter to Dr. Mai Sato, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran. The letter demands immediate action to halt the executions of six political prisoners facing death sentences in Iran.
🚨URGENT APPEAL
— Justice for the Victims of 1988 Massacre in Iran (@jvmifoundation) December 4, 2024
UN Special Rapporteur @drmaisato should help save 6 political prisoners in Iran facing imminent execution. #StopExecutionsInIran
Vahid Bani-Amrian
Abolhassan Montazer
Babak Alipour
Pouya Ghobadi
Mohammad Taghavi
Ali Akbar Daneshvarkarhttps://t.co/bktlP4uE0Y pic.twitter.com/XF4bDnaFcJ
The six individuals condemned by Tehran’s Revolutionary Court are:
- Abolhassan Montazer (65): An architect and veteran political prisoner with severe health issues.
- Pouya Ghobadi (32): An electrical engineer arrested in March 2024.
- Vahid Bani-Amrian (32): A management graduate subjected to repeated arrests since 2017.
- Babak Alipour (33): A law graduate detained multiple times, including his most recent arrest in January 2024.
- Ali Akbar Daneshvarkar (57): A civil engineer arrested in January 2024.
- Mohammad Taghavi (58): A political prisoner who has endured torture during prior incarcerations.
These sentences, handed down on November 25, 2024, by Judge Iman Afshari, reflect Iran’s broader campaign to silence dissent. The charges—ranging from “armed rebellion against the government” to “membership in the People’s Mojahedin Organization (PMOI/MEK)”—are widely regarded as politically motivated and in violation of international human rights norms, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Iran has ratified.
In September 2024, Judge Afshari sentenced two other PMOI supporters – Behrouz Ehsani (69) and Mehdi Hassani (48) – to death on charges of “rebellion”, “waging war against God”, “corruption on earth”, “membership in the PMOI”, and “conspiracy against national security”.
The letter also raises concerns about other PMOI supporters recently sentenced to death, such as Mohammad Javad Vafa’i Thani (Vafai Sani 29), a political prisoner and boxing champion, and Behrouz Ehsani (69) and Mehdi Hassani (48) in September 2024.
Signatories urge Dr. Sato to publicly denounce these death sentences and advocate for the prisoners’ safety, emphasizing: “Swift international action is essential to challenge Iran’s entrenched culture of impunity.”
The appeal has also been forwarded to prominent UN officials, including High Commissioner Volker Türk and Special Rapporteur Morris Tidball-Binz, underscoring the urgency of the situation.
