Iran's Attorney General Announces Execution of 20 Members of 'Tawhid and Jihad' Group

On Thursday, August 5, Iran's Attorney General announced that 20 individuals had been executed on charges of 'terrorist activities' in three provinces of the country. Earlier reports suggested that between seven to ten individuals were executed on these charges. Mohammad Javad Montazeri, in an interview with the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), accused the executed individuals of being 'influenced by Takfiri propaganda,' which he claimed was pursued both domestically and internationally. This judicial official claimed that 'all legal procedures for judicial proceedings for these individuals were followed, and their charges are outlined in the indictments.' Iranian news agencies reported that the aforementioned defendants were executed on Tuesday, August 3, in Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj. Executing this number of individuals in a single day is described as unprecedented. The last time, in 2013, the Iranian judiciary executed 16 members of a group known as 'Jundallah' in Zahedan on charges of engaging in terrorist activities. Abdulmalek Rigi, the leader of this group, was also executed in June 2010. In 2009, 44 individuals were executed in Iran over two days. Recently, the judiciary of Kurdistan Province and the Ministry of Intelligence of the Islamic Republic issued separate statements attributing multiple charges to the executed members of the 'Tawhid and Jihad' group. Among these charges are 'distributing poisoned chocolates among personnel of the law enforcement, military, and judiciary in Sanandaj,' 'armed assassination and martyrdom of Mawlawi Burhan Ali, a Sunni cleric, and Mawlawi Sheikh al-Islam,' 'armed conflict in the Sharifabad neighborhood with personnel of the Ministry of Intelligence,' 'armed robbery and extortion of four vehicles in Hamadan, Zanjan, and northern provinces,' and 'the martyrdom of four environmental guards in Kurdistan Province.' The Ministry of Intelligence stated that the defendants were members of a 'terrorist group' named 'Tawhid and Jihad' and published details of 24 attacks they allegedly carried out between 2009 and 2011. The ministry claims that '102 individuals associated with this group have been identified and are subject to intelligence, operational, and judicial prosecution,' with some killed in 'armed clashes with law enforcement and security forces,' while others were arrested, with some sentenced to death and others to imprisonment. In 2009, Iranian media reported that Mawlawi Sheikh al-Islam, a representative from Kurdistan Province in the Assembly of Experts, and Mawlawi Burhan Ali, a prominent Sunni cleric, were killed by armed individuals. Now, the Ministry of Intelligence claims that the assassination of these individuals was carried out by the 'Tawhid and Jihad' group. The ministry added that the group's actions ultimately led to the deaths of 20 individuals and injuries to 40 others. The execution of twenty individuals on terrorist charges occurs while, in the past six years, some detainees have stated in statements and videos they released that they were tortured multiple times during interrogations or forced to confess under pressure. Human rights organizations have repeatedly accused Iran of denying defendants access to legal counsel and that their trial processes do not meet legal standards and fair principles. In this regard, the International Federation for Human Rights issued a statement on Wednesday condemning the 'execution of dozens of Sunni prisoners' in Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj in the 'strongest terms.' Abdolkarim Lahiji, the president of this federation, stated that 'the execution of a large number of Kurdish Sunni prisoners based on forced confessions and unfair trials is an affront to the most fundamental principles of human rights.' Iran has one of the highest execution rates in the world. According to Amnesty International, the number of executions in Iran reached 977 in 2015, most of whom were charged with drug-related offenses.