UN says Iran has executed at least 56 people since March amid crackdown on dissent
The United Nations human rights chief has said Iran has executed at least 56 people since 19 March on national security-related charges. Volker Turk said 27 of those cases were linked to nationwide protests that began earlier this year. He warned that capital punishment was being used to instil fear and suppress dissent.
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In a statement released on Wednesday, Turk said he was alarmed by the rise in executions and death sentences issued in Iran since March. The UN Human Rights Office said more than 100 other people remain at risk of execution on similar security charges. It also said executions for drug-related offences continue at an alarming rate.
Turk said there were persistent failures in fair trial and due process guarantees in the Iranian legal system. According to reports received by the rights office, confessions leading to capital verdicts were allegedly obtained under torture and other ill-treatment. The UN also said some executions were carried out only weeks after arrest, while 12 defendants were reportedly sentenced to death after a single three-hour closed-door hearing.
The warning comes against the backdrop of a wider wave of unrest that began in late December and January after a collapse in the value of the Iranian rial led to hyperinflation and severe food price rises. Those demonstrations quickly developed from economic strikes into antigovernment protests calling for political reform. Rights groups have said the authorities have responded with a broader campaign of arrests, prosecutions and executions.
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The latest figures add to international concern over Iran's use of the death penalty, particularly in cases linked to political dissent and security offences. The UN statement also reflects growing scrutiny of the role of Revolutionary Courts, which rights monitors say have handled many of the cases without basic trial safeguards. The issue is likely to remain central to criticism of Iran's judicial system and its treatment of protesters.
What remains unclear is how many of the people at risk of execution have already had final appeals exhausted, and whether any of the cases may be halted. The UN has urged the authorities to stop all executions and move towards abolition of the death penalty. Further attention is likely to focus on whether the reported cases linked to the protests proceed in the coming days and weeks.
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