Reactions from Social and Student Activists to the Death Sentences of Sharifeh Mohammadi and Pakhshan Azizi: The Regime's Revenge on the 'Women, Life, Freedom' Uprising

The Telegram channel 'United Students' published a statement signed by a number of social and student activists condemning the death sentences for Pakhshan Azizi, a journalist and civil activist, and Sharifeh Mohammadi, a imprisoned labor activist in Iran, calling for the annulment of these sentences. The signatories described the issuance of such heavy sentences for women as 'the regime's revenge' against the 'Women, Life, Freedom' uprising. The statement noted that the Islamic Republic, in confronting the 'activities' of individuals, has targeted their 'right to life' and seeks to 'create terror and fear' through the issuance of death sentences. The signatories emphasized Pakhshan Azizi's humanitarian work in the field of women and children and her assistance in war refugee camps in Syria, stating that the regime aims to suppress groups, including women and ethnic minorities, to quell their protests. They described the death sentence for Pakhshan Azizi on charges of 'rebellion' as a 'clear violation of her rights' and stated that the violation of principles of 'transparent and fair' judicial proceedings has resulted in the absence of an independent court and rule of law in this process. The announcement of the death sentence for Pakhshan Azizi, born in Mahabad, who has been accused of 'rebellion,' has sparked widespread protests from social media users and human rights organizations. The Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran issued the death sentence for her, claiming her 'membership' in 'groups that have carried out armed rebellion against the Islamic government.' This political prisoner has also been sentenced to 'four years of punitive imprisonment' for the charge of 'membership in PJAK.' Pakhshan Azizi has previously stated that Islamic Republic officials tortured her for forced confessions against herself. She has said, 'I was repeatedly hanged during interrogations, they would drop me 10 meters to the bottom of the ground and then pull me back out, making me feel socially defeated and broken.' Earlier, political and ideological female prisoners at Evin Prison protested the death sentence for Pakhshan Azizi by gathering collectively in the prison yard. Vida Rabani, a journalist and imprisoned human rights activist, informed about the difficult conditions of three female prisoners in Evin, including Ms. Azizi, in a letter from Evin Prison published on the Instagram account of Narges Mohammadi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and her cellmate, on the 10th of Mordad. Ms. Rabani, referring to the violence inflicted on female prisoners and the issuance of death sentences for them in court, wrote: 'Women who have been deprived of rights are now becoming citizens so they can be taken to court and receive the heaviest possible sentence, which is death.' The Human Rights Campaign in Iran, on Thursday, 11 Mordad, issued a statement noting the increase in death sentences issued by the judiciary of the Islamic Republic for political prisoners and considering many of the charges to be fabricated, calling on the international community to take a stand on this issue. The French PEN Association, supporting the 'Women, Life, Freedom' movement in Iran, has called for the annulment of the death sentence for Pakhshan Azizi, a journalist and civil activist imprisoned in Iran. According to reports from human rights organizations, the officials of the Islamic Republic have intensified the suppression of activist women and human rights defenders following the nationwide protests over the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police in 1401, which has become known as 'Women, Life, Freedom,' and have resorted to harsher methods and heavy sentences to silence dissenting voices and those with differing opinions. The wave of executions, arrests, and gross human rights violations in Iran continues; global condemnation is ongoing. The French PEN Association has called for the annulment of Pakhshan Azizi's death sentence. The Human Rights Campaign in Iran: The international community should take a stand against the issuance of death sentences for political female prisoners in Iran. Vida Rabani's letter from Evin: The gap between arrest and delivery of the accused to the judiciary can be filled with any violence. Political prisoners in Qezel Hesar emphasize the continuation of 'No to Execution Tuesdays'; 8 female prisoners in Rasht have joined the hunger strike. Exclusive: A sit-in by four political prisoners in Qezel Hesar with the slogan 'The executionist government must be overthrown.' The judiciary of the Islamic Republic has accused three protesting citizens in Boukan of 'corruption on earth' and 'waging war.' The Revolutionary Court prevented Pakhshan Azizi, the political prisoner sentenced to death, from meeting with her lawyers. Narges Mohammadi: Political-ideological female prisoners in Evin will gather in the prison yard until Sunday morning. The second session of the trial of 8 defendants accused of 'rebellion'; the Iran Human Rights Organization: The international community should react to Pakhshan Azizi's death sentence.