Larijani Calls UN Human Rights Resolution on Iran a 'Repetition of False Claims'

The head of the judiciary of the Islamic Republic claimed on Wednesday that those alleging 'mass and secret executions' in Iran are 'liars' and described the recent UN resolution condemning human rights violations in Iran as a repetition of previous 'false claims' with 'a new coat of paint.' According to Mehr News Agency, Sadegh Amoli Larijani stated that the recent UN General Assembly resolution regarding the human rights situation in Iran reiterates previous 'false' claims with 'a new coat of paint' and does not require much repetition of responses. He added, 'The excessive insistence on repeating false claims by an official international organization, based on the words of counter-revolutionaries and enemies of this Islamic system, is regrettable and surprising.' The UN General Assembly, on Thursday, December 27, adopted a resolution calling on the Islamic Republic of Iran to cease human rights violations, including 'torture, gender discrimination, and targeting activists and journalists.' Marzieh Afkham, the spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, on Friday, December 28, deemed this resolution 'fundamentally rejected and regrettable,' stating that it was prepared using 'biased and unverified sources and in a partisan manner.' The head of the judiciary further denied the implementation of 'mass and secret executions' in Iran, adding, 'Our request from the lying claimants who have made such false claims is to announce the names, times, and locations of such executions so that we can also know and provide the necessary responses to them.' He continued, 'Previously, it was reported that several people were executed in Isfahan without trial, and the names announced by the claimants did not exist at all.' The UN Human Rights Committee adopted a resolution on Tuesday, November 27, expressing deep concern over human rights violations in Iran, particularly the 'very high number of executions' carried out by the Islamic Republic. This resolution emphasizes that at least 850 people have been executed in Iran over the past 15 months. The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran published the names of one hundred prisoners held in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, who, according to this human rights organization, were executed 'secretly,' 'en masse,' and 'unannounced.' According to this campaign, from the beginning of summer 2009 to the end of summer 2011, there were 'at least 35 instances of secret mass executions' in Mashhad Prison. This report also referenced other instances of secret executions in prisons in Birjand, Qezel Hesar in Karaj, Karun, Ahvaz, Taybad, Urmia, and Qom. Previously, Ahmad Qabel, a cleric, religious researcher, and political prisoner in 2009, reported that during his three-month stay in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, '56 people' were secretly executed. 'Some want to undermine the nuclear negotiations,' the head of the judiciary continued, stating, 'Unfortunately, some, through the media, either knowingly or out of ignorance, question Iran's natural and legitimate right to acquire nuclear knowledge in unison with the enemies.' Sadegh Amoli Larijani added, 'The clear issue is that some want to undermine the negotiations in unison with Iran's enemies and play a discordant tune.' He emphasized, 'However, our advice to the negotiating team is to continue their work with precision and firmness, backed by the comprehensive support of the people and officials, and not to retreat an inch from the nuclear rights of the nation.' Ahmad Shirzad, Sadegh Zibakalam, and Davood Hormidass Baavand, three university professors, explicitly opposed Iran's nuclear program at a seminar about the Islamic Republic's nuclear program held on Thursday, December 26, in Tehran, stating that this program has harmed the country more than the eight-year war with Iraq.