Letter to the Head of the Judiciary; Amnesty International Calls for Immediate Cancellation of Reza Rasayi's Death Sentence

Amnesty International, in a letter to Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje'i, the head of the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic, called for the "immediate cancellation" of the death sentence of Reza (Gholamreza) Rasayi. Mr. Rasayi, 34 years old from the Yarsan (Ahl-e Haq) minority in the city of Sahneh, Kermanshah, was arrested in connection with the nationwide protests of "Women, Life, Freedom." The second branch of the Kermanshah Criminal Court sentenced him to death for allegedly being involved in the "murder" of an officer whom state media identified as a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Reza Rasayi has repeatedly denied involvement in the murder of this officer. The court also sentenced him to one year in prison and 74 lashes for "disrupting public order." Mr. Rasayi stated during his trial that his confessions were obtained under torture and other mistreatment during interrogations and without proper investigation. Reza Rasayi was arrested in Shahriar, Tehran Province, by intelligence police officers. According to a knowledgeable source, the officers tortured Reza Rasayi during interrogations, including electric shocks, suffocation with a plastic bag over his head, and severe beatings to force him to confess. He was then transferred to Dizelabad Prison in Kermanshah and met with his lawyer for the first time during a trial held over three sessions. Amnesty International stated it has no information on whether an appeal has been filed against this ruling. The organization emphasized that Reza Rasayi's right to a fair trial, including access to a chosen lawyer from the time of his arrest, was "clearly" violated, and his trial was not conducted by an independent, competent, and impartial court. Previously, a knowledgeable source from Reza Rasayi's case told Voice of America that despite eyewitness testimony and contradictions in the statements of other defendants, the court issued a death sentence based on "judicial knowledge." According to this source, under the "forced confession" obtained from Reza Rasayi, he was told to write that he had "struck from behind," and it appears that the officers initially did not know how this officer was killed when they obtained this confession, which later became clear that the fatal blow was from the front. Other detainees were also forced to "confess" that Reza Rasayi "struck from behind." Amnesty International has documented the issue of forced confessions by Islamic Republic officials and the courts' reliance on such confessions for issuing death sentences, including in relation to several detainees from the "Women, Life, Freedom" protests. Amnesty International urged Eje'i to immediately revoke Reza Rasayi's death sentence and stated that if a specific criminal offense is determined for him, it should be processed according to international standards under fair trial conditions without resorting to the death penalty or obtaining forced confessions. The human rights organization also called for allowing Reza Rasayi access to an independent lawyer and appropriate medical care. Amnesty International requested that the head of the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic allow independent observers access to the files related to the nationwide protests in Iran. The increase in executions by the Islamic Republic following the nationwide "Women, Life, Freedom" protests has raised serious concerns and criticism from human rights organizations and activists worldwide. Previously, the UN Secretary-General reported that the Islamic Republic is executing at a "worrying speed," with a 30% increase in the number of executions in the first seven months of this year compared to the same period last year. The Iran Human Rights Organization also announced that more than 600 people have been executed by the Islamic Republic this year, the highest number in the past eight years. The cries of Reza Rasayi's mother, after learning about the death sentence issued for this protester, reflect the ongoing human rights violations in Iran.