Six Political Prisoners: Intensification of Violence, Especially Executions, Will Lead Society Towards More Violence

Six political prisoners issued a statement condemning the death sentences that have been issued and carried out in recent days, stating: "Contrary to the always incorrect calculations of the government, the fear and terror resulting from executions will not prevent the people's struggle for sovereignty over their own destiny." Mostafa Tajzadeh, Amir Salar Davoodi, Hossein Razaghi, Reza Shahabi, Saeed Madani, and Keyvan Mohtadi described execution as a term that, regardless of its legal implications, carries an inherently negative and repulsive connotation, and only those lacking human qualities can hear news of executions without feeling disgust. The signatories of this statement warned the rulers, especially the security and judicial institutions, that the continuation and intensification of any form of violence, especially executions, will push society towards greater violence, with the main victim being the human security of the Iranian people. They wrote, "The Islamic Republic uses the death penalty as a tool of repression in line with its security approaches, believing that more executions will cover up the political, economic, and social challenges and crises facing the country today. Therefore, it hastily and recklessly resorts to executions, especially against protesting citizens. Nevertheless, public opinion has never considered the issuance and execution of death sentences as a form of justice, and contrary to the always incorrect calculations of the government, the fear and terror resulting from executions will not prevent the people's struggle for sovereignty over their own destiny." They condemned all forms of violence, from murder and assassination to executions and governmental repression, emphasizing that executions further undermine the roots of all national assets of the country and serve no public good. Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kazemi Sheikh Shabani, and Saeed Yaghoubi Kord Safeli, defendants in the "Isfahan House" case, were executed early on Friday, May 29. These three were accused of killing two Basij members and a police officer, a charge they and their families have repeatedly denied. The three defendants also stated that they were forced to make televised confessions after enduring severe torture. Social media users condemned the executions of Iranian protesters. Protests were held by a number of Iranians residing in Paris against the executions in Iran, as well as by Iranians living in Edmonton, Canada. Sepideh Gholian stated: "In Iran, its poets sing the song of freedom in the streets and go to meet the bullets with the hope of a new day." A statement from 174 civil activists described executions as "organized state murder." The mother of Mahsa Amini reacted to the breaking of her daughter's tombstone, stating that Zhina is "the love of the entire Iranian nation." Family members of Majid Kazemi, one of the executed in the "Isfahan House" case, were arrested after being "beaten." Protests against executions were held in Tehran, Karaj, Mashhad, and Abdanan. Protests occurred at several universities in Iran, where students dressed in "mourning clothes" protested the "murder of three martyrs of the path to freedom."