MPs warn one country has reached sickening milestone with record executions | World | News
The brutal regime is carrying out a record number of executions in a bid to “hold on to power”, MPs have warned. Last month, the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran hanged 204 prisoners, including six women; this was the highest figure since the Islamic revolution overthrew the Shah monarchy in 1979.
In total, more than 1,100 Iranians have been executed so far this year, according to the Organization for Human Rights of Iran, an independent NGO in Norway; more than double last year’s total. UN experts have warned of “industrial scale” executions, with an average of nine people being executed a day in recent weeks. According to opposition groups, 39 women and 7 children are among those who say 17 political prisoners have been sentenced to death.
State executions rose sharply in 2022 following widespread protests over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was beaten by security forces for refusing to wear a headscarf. The regime detained 21,000 alleged ‘spies’ following a 12-day war with Israel earlier this year. Among those arrested on ‘espionage’ charges are British couple Lindsay and Craig Foreman, from East Sussex, who were traveling through Iran on a motorbike when they were stopped and arrested in January.
Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel said mass executions in Iran were a sign of “authoritarian brutality”. He said: “Iran’s barbaric regime brutally oppresses its own people and brutally and horrifically mass executes those who enjoy freedom and tolerance in their country.
“The Ayatollah regime uses death to terrorize the Iranian people and has even executed brave women’s rights protesters who dared to question its oppressive policies.”
Labor MP Graeme Downie added: “Iran’s weakened and discredited regime knows no bounds in its repression of its own people. Executions of dissidents, including women and young people, have multiplied into a reign of terror. Where is the international outcry against this brutal attack on civilians?”
Friday, October 10 is World Day Against the Death Penalty, an event where groups around the world petition to abolish the death penalty.
Lord Walney, the UK government’s former adviser on political violence, said: “The Ayatollah knows he has lost the support of Iran’s oppressed people, so he is resorting to mass executions to cling to power.
“This is important for Britain too; when the people of Iran find a way to liberate themselves from this terrible regime, Britain’s streets will be safer from the terrorism and extremism of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).”
