An Iranian-Singaporean Citizen Executed in Singapore for Drug Offenses

On Friday, December 9, the director of Iran's Human Rights Organization announced the execution of an Iranian-Singaporean citizen for drug possession in Singapore. Mahmoud Amiri Moghaddam wrote on his social media account on 'X': 'Unfortunately, Masoud Rahimi Mehrzad, an Iranian-Singaporean citizen, was executed this morning in Singapore for possessing and carrying less than 32 grams of diamorphine!' Mr. Amiri Moghaddam noted: 'Masoud did not have the opportunity to see his father one last time and say goodbye.' He emphasized that execution is an inhumane, cruel, and degrading punishment that should be condemned wherever it is carried out. Accordingly, Mahmoud Amiri Moghaddam wrote that many individuals and human rights organizations in Singapore and internationally had worked to save Masoud's life. In this context, the Iran Human Rights Organization had requested the Singaporean government on Wednesday, December 7, to spare this citizen from execution. Masoud Rahimi Mehrzad was 34 years old at the time of his execution and was held in Changi Prison in Singapore. This dual-national citizen, born in Singapore to a Singaporean mother and an Iranian father, was arrested on May 19, 2010, for drug possession and sentenced to death. Before his execution, Abbas Araqchi, the Iranian Foreign Minister, told his Singaporean counterpart: 'Iran, while respecting Singapore's laws, expects this country to reconsider the execution of Masoud Rahimi, taking humanitarian considerations into account.'