Prince Reza Pahlavi on the Execution of Reza Rasayi: 'Khamenei the Zahhak Takes Revenge on the People of Iran'

Following the execution of Reza Rasayi, another detainee from the nationwide protests of 2022, the mother of the bereaved Mohammad Qabadi emphasized the solidarity of grieving mothers, while Prince Reza Pahlavi stated that 'Khamenei the Zahhak' takes revenge on 'the innocent people and youth of Iran' every time he is 'humiliated' in public opinion. On Tuesday, August 7, Prince Reza Pahlavi wrote on X: 'Khamenei the Zahhak has taken another young life. The cowardly leader of the Islamic Republic takes revenge on the innocent people and youth of Iran every time his weakness and incompetence become clearer and he is humiliated in domestic and foreign public opinion.' He noted that Reza Rasayi was 'a patriotic youth from the Yarsan community in Iran who took to the streets for freedom during the Mahsa uprising, just like thousands of his compatriots.' He added, 'The regime's thugs arrested him on false charges.' Prince Reza Pahlavi emphasized that the Islamic Republic's intelligence and judicial officials kept Reza Rasayi 'under severe torture and pressure in prison for the past two years' and ultimately 'executed him at night without informing or allowing his family and lawyer to be present.' He stressed that 'the anti-Iranian regime did not even adhere to its own sham laws and regulations for carrying out the death sentence.' Prince Reza Pahlavi also expressed, 'I share in the grief of Reza Rasayi and the sorrowful family and mother. I urge my compatriots to support his family and honor the memory of this patriotic and freedom-seeking young man in the best way possible. The path of Reza and all the immortal ones of Iran will continue until the day of freedom.' The execution of Reza Rasayi has sparked widespread reactions among social media users, with some activists emphasizing that as long as the Islamic Republic remains, poverty, misery, executions, and torture will continue. Ebrahim Allahbakhshi, a human rights activist, shared images of the mourning mother of Reza Rasayi, writing: 'Mama Azar, I am sorry for what they have done to you.' Masoumeh Ahmadi, the grieving mother of Mohammad Qabadi, who was executed by the Islamic Republic's judiciary in recent months, expressed solidarity with Reza Rasayi's mother, writing to her: 'Sister, we mothers of Iran go every day with a white scarf on our hands to welcome another grieving mother who has sacrificed her child for this land.' She emphasized, 'We will be each other's comfort with the burdens of our sorrows. Today, Mohammad is hosting your Reza.' Mahsa Pirayi, the daughter of the grieving Minou Majidi, stated that government forces buried Reza Rasayi 'in the Minaabad cemetery of Kermanshah,' where his mother rests, emphasizing that 'we will neither forget nor forgive.' Soroush Lashkari, a protest rapper known as 'Hichkas,' referred to the execution of Reza Rasayi as a 'government murder' and stressed that 'the unbearable sensitivity' regarding these executions 'must be permanent,' stating: 'In Iran occupied by the Islamic Republic, every day the Iranian people are killed in various forms by this terrorist force, and we are unaware of it.' Shirin Ebadi, a prominent human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said on Tuesday, August 7, that the Islamic Republic executed Reza Rasayi 'just when the media space was filled with a multitude of news about elections, the new government, Ismail Haniyeh, the war in Israel, and Hezbollah.' Nazanin Boniadi, an actress and human rights activist, also described the execution of Reza Rasayi as following 'a severely unjust trial' based on 'forced confessions under torture,' referring to the torture methods this detained protester endured, including 'beatings, electric shocks, suffocation, and sexual violence.' Additionally, in a post on X, Narges Mohammadi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner currently imprisoned in Evin, wrote that Reza Rasayi, who was arrested during the 'Women, Life, Freedom' movement, was executed early on Wednesday, August 7, without his family's knowledge. Masih Alinejad, a journalist and political activist, described the execution of Reza Rasayi as 'shocking, heartbreaking, and a wake-up call for other prisoners at risk of execution.' She referred to Reza Rasayi as 'one of the brave protesters' who 'took to the streets after the brutal killing of Mahsa Amini' and was executed today. Nasrin Shakeri, the grieving mother of Nika Shakeri, also wrote on her Instagram account: 'Reza Rasayi was executed without a final visit and without informing his family.' She referenced 'the cries and pleading of Reza Rasayi's grieving mother,' stating: 'To whom have we submitted to obedience and slavery? ... Oh God, how have we submitted to this humiliation?' Yashar Tabrizi, a civil activist in Iran, stated on Tuesday, August 7, shortly after the execution of Reza Rasayi, in a video message on X, that 'as long as the Islamic Republic remains in this land, we will witness poverty, misery, displacement, misfortune, despair, social anomalies, repression, torture, detention, imprisonment, and executions every day.' This constitutional monarchist civil activist called for 'not to allow the Islamic Republic to execute the best children of this land.' Negar Korkor, the sister of the grieving Mojahid Korkor, another protester at serious risk of execution, stated that 'Reza Rasayi was executed in silence and ignorance' and urged everyone to 'be the voice of Mojahid Korkor' and not to allow anything to happen to her brother 'in silence and ignorance.' Mahmoud Amiri-Moghaddam, a human rights defender, emphasized that 'while all the world's attention is on the potential war between the Islamic Republic and Israel, the Islamic Republic is focusing on suppressing and executing its most significant threat, the people of Iran.' According to him, 'the death sentence of Reza Rasayi was issued based on torture-induced confessions and aimed at intimidating the people,' and 'Ali Khamenei and the officials of the corrupt judicial system of the Islamic Republic must be held accountable for this extrajudicial killing.' Amirhossein Mir-Asmaeili, a journalist, also emphasized that the Islamic Republic executed Reza Rasayi, a protester against whom 'there was no evidence,' out of 'anger' following the killing of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. Shahram Rafieizadeh, a journalist, stated that 'the Zahhak of Tehran committed another crime by executing Reza Rasayi,' asserting that 'the Islamic Republic suppresses the voices of condemned protesters, political prisoners, and bereaved families by creating a 'quasi-war' to continue its massacre and repression.' Moloud Hajizadeh, a journalist, also wrote to the officials of the Islamic Republic on X: 'We saw the fear and terror in Ali Khamenei's eyes one day after Haniyeh's death in Tehran, and you are trying to hide your terror and impotence with the continuation of your crimes and the execution of the youth of our land, you worthless ones.' Hossein Ronaghi, a civil activist in Iran, described the execution of Reza Rasayi as 'government murder,' stating: 'We are dealing with a government that makes the Iranian people pay for every blow it receives. A government alien to this land, which is not from the people and seems to have occupied Iran.' According to Mr. Ronaghi, 'this government, in the face of its failures, whether in foreign, security, military, diplomatic, or any other arenas, instead of being accountable and accepting responsibility, takes revenge on the defenseless people of Iran.' Dariush Zand, a human rights activist, also reacted to the execution of Reza Rasayi, stating: 'We go to sleep at night terrified of war and wake up to news of executions. The Islamic Republic is worse than any curse.' Sima Sabat, a journalist, emphasized that 'the Islamic Republic will continue to execute as long as it faces no consequences for its executions,' and 'it killed Reza Rasayi as well.' Mahaan Mehrabi, the sister of the grieving Mahmoud Mehrabi, another protester at risk of execution, reacted to the execution of Reza Rasayi, saying: 'Oh, the cry of helplessness and victimization.' Reza (Gholamreza) Rasayi, a 34-year-old protester from Sahneh in Kermanshah Province and a follower of the Yarsan faith, was sentenced to death based on 'forced confessions under torture' from several other detainees in connection with the killing of Nader Birami, the head of the intelligence department of Sahneh County, an accusation he had repeatedly denied. The judicial authorities of the Islamic Republic executed Reza Rasayi early on Tuesday, August 7, without a final visit in the central prison (Dizelabad) of Kermanshah and secretly buried his body without informing his family. Several human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, had previously warned about the risk of execution for this protesting citizen following the rejection of Reza Rasayi's appeal by the Supreme Court. Caroline Wagner, a member of the German parliament and political sponsor of Reza Rasayi, emphasized that the death sentence was based on 'confessions obtained under torture' and described the court proceedings in his case as 'unjust.' A source close to Reza Rasayi had told Voice of America last year that 'despite the testimony of an eyewitness and contradictions in the statements of other defendants, the court issued a death sentence for this protester based on the judge's knowledge.'