The number of executions carried out by Iran’s religious dictatorship has exceeded 150 in the month from September 22 to October 21, marking the highest monthly total in the past decade. Since Massoud Pezeshkian was inaugurated as Iran’s new president on July 28, 2024, more than 386 executions have been reported.
In a recent and damning report, Javaid Rehman, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran from July 2018 to July 2024, classified two waves of mass killings in Iran as acts of genocide: the massacres of 1982 and 1988. The term “genocide” applies here because Iran’s religious regime executed its opponents solely based on their beliefs, ethnic background, or political affiliation, with the aim of eradicating them. Shockingly, this practice continues to this day.
The Iranian Ministry of Intelligence has intensified its crackdown on supporters and families of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), the regime’s sworn enemies, targeting them solely due to family ties or presumed support for the Resistance. This wave of arrests aims to prevent any social movement or uprising against the ruling powers. In July 2024, this organization submitted to the UN a list of 3,600 supporters and relatives detained by the regime who had previously massacred nearly 30,000 PMOI members in 1988. Meanwhile, the judiciary is extending prison sentences for political prisoners, including Maryam Akbari Monfared, one of Iran’s longest-held political detainees, and Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi, under spurious pretexts to block their release. Maryam Akbari Monfared’s “crime” consists of filing a complaint over the execution of her siblings.
Like all dictators throughout history who were facing intense pressure, Iran’s religious leadership is resorting to ruthless executions and extreme repression. In an appalling act on October 29, Khamenei’s agents severed the fingers of two brothers, Shahab and Mehrdad Teimouri, using a guillotine at Urmia Prison. Five other prisoners in Urmia are currently awaiting similar amputations. The two brothers were arrested in December 2018 on theft charges and sentenced to the amputation of their right hand fingers. Amnesty International’s most recent report condemning such inhumane amputations dates back to 2018. Under international scrutiny, the Iranian regime seemed to have paused or at least limited public disclosure of such punishments. However, the regime remains deeply fearful of a discontented populace, which it views as a powder keg on the brink of explosion.
Negotiation with and leniency toward this enabler of execution, terror, and war only embolden them to further violate human rights and destabilize global peace. Europe and the international community should follow Germany’s example. After the execution of an Iranian-German citizen, kidnapped by Iran’s dictator four years ago, Germany closed all Iranian consulates within its borders. The European Union should condition its relations with Iran on concrete human rights improvements and an immediate halt to executions. Failure to act will allow this dictatorship to continue undermining peace and stability worldwide, as we have seen in the recent Middle East conflict.
Dear reader,
Opinions expressed in the op-ed section are solely those of the individual author and do not represent the official stance of our newspaper. We believe in providing a platform for a wide range of voices and perspectives, even those that may challenge or differ from our own. We remain committed to providing our readers with high-quality, fair, and balanced journalism. Thank you for your continued support.
