Saeed Masouri, an Iranian political prisoner, has shared a poignant letter on the occasion of Christmas, marking his 25th year behind bars. In his message, he recounts the unrelenting suffering within Iranian prisons and the alarming rise in executions under the regime. Masouri describes the human cost of this grim reality, where, on average, one person is executed every four hours.
Addressed to international human rights organizations, including the UN Human Rights Council, UN Secretary General, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights Situation in Iran, the letter is a desperate plea for immediate action. Writing from Ghezel Hesar prison, Masouri calls on global leaders to move beyond expressions of concern and implement binding measures that condition diplomatic and political relations with Iran on halting these atrocities. He urges the referral of Iran’s human rights violations to the UN Security Council, stressing that inaction fuels further bloodshed.
Masouri’s Letter in Full
This is the 25th Christmas that I am spending in prison. I do not know what more my eyes must see or what further burdens and heartaches this heart must endure. From the time I was sentenced to death and held in solitary confinement, considering every meeting to be my last and every “opening and closing” sound of the door as a death knell (even after 25 years, every such sound due to psychological conditioning still triggers the same feeling), to witnessing the executions of dear friends and comrades up close—I no longer know how much more I must see and endure. From the absence and taking away of cellmates—Hojjat Zamani, Majid Kavousi, Farzad Kamangar, Ali Saremi, Abdolreza Rajabi, Afshin Osanlou, Mansour Radpour, Shahrokh Zamani, Loqman and Zaniar Moradi, Ali Heydarian, and others…—to dear and loving cellmates like Mohsen Dokmehchi, Jafar Kazemi, Mohammad Haj Aghaei, Gholamreza Khosravi, Hamed Ahmadi, Shahram Ahmadi, Ghasem Abesteh, Aso, Ayub, Farhad Salimi, Anvar, Khosrow, Mohsen Shekari, and Mohammad Ghobadlou—to hearing the screams and wails of their families…
I truly do not know… I still cannot understand how, after seeing the childish drawing of Mahna, a 6-year-old girl, who drew herself and her mother next to her father’s gallows at the gates of Gohardasht Prison while waiting for her last meeting and kissing her father’s face (upon receiving his body), my heart has not yet stopped from these piercing and agonizing beats…!!?
Currently, we witness an execution every four hours on average. During this Christmas period alone, nearly 25 innocent people were executed, equating to almost one execution every 2.5 hours!
This letter is not addressed to my fellow compatriots this time (who are doing whatever is within their power) but to all awakened consciences in international human rights institutions, especially the UN Human Rights Council (High Commissioner), rapporteurs, particularly the Special Rapporteur Ms. Mai Sato, and all influential figures: UN Secretary-General Mr. António Guterres, European Commission President Ms. Ursula von der Leyen, and European Parliament President Ms. Roberta Metsola. I urgently ask them not just to express concern or condemn the executions but to take more serious measures to prevent these executions.
Do not perceive the number of executions merely as figures; these are human lives being lost daily.
The least that can be done in this regard is to bind this “execution government” to humane and human rights standards by conditioning diplomatic and political interactions on halting this killing machine in hopes that the massacres will cease.
If necessary, even referring this human rights violation case to the Security Council! Every hour and day of delay in this matter results in more and more executions and, of course, the shedding of blood from the bodies of the Iranian people.
Perhaps if effective actions had been taken earlier, even Italian journalist Ms. Cecilia Sala would not have fallen victim to hostage-taking policies (and during Christmas, no less!).
Masouri’s letter stands as a stark reminder of the ongoing human rights crisis in Iran and a plea for the international community to act decisively to end the executions.
