Kaesra
01-29-2010, 07:26 PM
<table width="100%" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" dir="ltr" align="left">Iran Hangs Two Sentenced In Postelection Trials </th></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" dir="ltr"> By Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE/RL (http://www.rferl.org/content/Iran_Executes_Two_Over_Election_Unrest/1941862.html)
Today at dawn, 37-year-old Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani and 19-year-old Arash Rahmanipour were hanged after being convicted of attempting to overthrow the Iranian regime. The two were among over 100 detainees who were put on trial following street protests that erupted in Iran following the disputed reelection of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad.
<table width="460" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="1" bordercolor="#00aa00" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td> http://www.payvand.com/news/09/dec/Ashoura-protests-by-TehranLive6.jpg
An injured Iranian opposition supporter flashes a V-sign during clashes with security forces in Tehran on December 27.
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The protests shook the clerical establishment and plunged the Islamic republic into its worst crisis. The mass trial was condemned by rights groups as a parody of justice.
Ali Zamani and Rahmanipour's executions, the first of people tried after the post-election unrest, are seen as a move to create fear and intimidate the opposition.
The executions come ahead of the February 11 anniversary of the 1979 revolution that is expected to lead to fresh antigovernment protests.
Timing Of Arrests
Nasrin Sotoudeh, a prominent Tehran-based human rights lawyer who represented Rahmanipour, tells RFE/RL Rahmanipour's case had nothing to do with the postelection unrest.
She says he was arrested in April, three months before the presidential vote, and that she was denied of the right to defend him adequately.
"The speed with which the sentence was issued and executed demonstrates that the goal is to create fear among the people, particularly after the Ashura" unrest on the religious holiday at the end of December, she says.
"I think the establishment is trying to transfer its own fear to the society while the carrying out of such sentences will only radicalize the society," Sotoudeh adds.
Sotoudeh says Rahmanipour was pressured in court[/"]400 Bad Request to make a false confession about his role in a plot to create disorder during the election.
According to some reports Ali Zamani was also arrested before the June election. He's also said to have been under pressure to make a similar confession.
Both men were charged with being members of an exiled monarchist group, "The Assembly of Kingdom," whose aims include toppling the Iranian regime.
Sotoudeh says Rahmanipour was originally detained for having materials that could be used for producing explosives.
"Some materials, chemical fertilizers, were found at his house, it was said that Arash was planning to use them to produce explosive materials," Sotoudeh says.
She adds that even if the accusation is true, having chemical fertilizer "is not a crime. Even if he had acquired it with the aim of producing explosives, he hadn't done anything."
Death Sentences
Rahmanipour and Ali Zamani were among 11 detainees sentenced to death on charges that include "waging war against God" (Moharebeh) and membership in an armed opposition group. Observers warn that their execution could pave the way for more hangings over the postelection unrest.
Human rights groups including Amnesty International had called on Iran to review the death sentences.
Sotoudeh says Rahmanipour's execution is a clear violation of Iran's international human rights obligations, and that Iran "is responsible for an illegal and unfair execution of a human being and child called Arash Rahmanipour."
Earlier this month, Hadi Ghaemi of the International Campaign For Human Rights in Iran told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that the postelection death sentences demonstrate more than ever the need for the Islamic republic to abolish the death penalty, "because it will prevent killings in relation to political events."
Iran has one of the highest rates of execution in the world.
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<table width="100%" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" dir="ltr" align="left">'You Can't Punish Someone Before He Commits A Crime' </th></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" dir="ltr"> Source: RFE/RL (http://www.rferl.org/content/You_Cant_Punish_Someone_Before_He_Commits_A_Crime/1943349.html)
Nineteen-year-old Arash Rahmanipour was executed in Iran on January 28 after being convicted of waging war against God and attempting to overthrow the Iranian regime. The charges against Rahmanipour related to his alleged role in Iran's postelection unrest. His father, Davoud Rahmanipour, told Radio Farda broadcaster Baktash Khamsehpour about what he called an unjust sentence against his son.
http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Arash-Rahmanipour-in-court.jpg
Arash Rahmanipour
Radio Farda: Was your son a member of the monarchist group called the Assembly of the Kingdom -- which, according to Iranian officials, aims to overthrow the Iranian regime?
Davoud Rahmanipour: I don't know, because for the past year, due to some problems, I was in one of the provinces and I don't have enough information about it.
Radio Farda: You reportedly found out about the execution of your son through the media. Officials had not informed you, is that right?
Rahmanipour: Yes, on Monday night my son contacted me and told me that we could visit him on Thursday [January 28]. We were happy and on Thursday we went to visit him at Evin Prison, but there we were told that he has been transferred to Karaj. That's all [the prison officials] said and we believed them. On the way we realized that state television had announced that he had been hanged that morning and became a martyr.
Radio Farda: This is a very great loss for your family. Can you tell us how this has affected your family?
Rahmanipour: Naturally we're all very upset -- we've lost a loved one -- but what is important is Arash's intentions. He was seeking justice and humanity; he faced some problems because of his young age, but he was always seeking justice.
Radio Farda: Did you try to do anything to prevent the execution of your son?
Rahmanipour: The sentence was very unjust. I tried to refer to Islam and Islamic kindness and told his judge that my son didn't do anything, he didn't spill anybody's blood and didn't use a bomb, he didn't have weapons. They said he was planning to do this and that, but he didn't even know how the next day was going to look. Even if we accept that he intended to commit [a crime], you can't [punish] that person before he has committed a crime.
I wrote to the judge that my son hasn't done anything, and that you can't sentence him based on his childish thoughts. The judge didn't even talk to my son for two minutes, he just talked to him for about a minute and a half. I was there. He just asked him how much his father makes, and how many siblings he has.
There was another court session in which Arash made some confessions, and it's not clear which part was true or whether it was dictated to him and was not true. Leave it to the future and history and awakening consciences.
<hr> Copyright (c) 2010 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org (http://www.rferl.org/) ... Payvand News - 01/29/10 ... --
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<table width="100%" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" dir="ltr">
</td></tr> <tr><th colspan="2" dir="ltr" align="left"> Hardliner Cleric Commends Iran Executions, Wants More </th></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" dir="ltr"> Source: Radio Zamaneh (http://radiozamaneh.com/enzam/)
Ayatollah Ahmad Janati told today's worshipers at Tehran's Friday Mass prayers that it is no time to show "mercy" and if we show any "weakness," we will run into difficulties. He called on the Head of the Judiciary to confront "rioters" firmly without mercy.
<table bgcolor="#ffffff" border="1" bordercolor="#ff0000" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td> http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Ahmad-Janati.jpg
[B]Ahmad Janati
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He went on to commend Ayatollah Larijani, Head of the Judiciary for issuing the death sentence of the two detainees that were hanged yesterday.
Yesterday, Mohammadreza Ali-Zamani and Arash Rahmanipour were executed in connection with the post-election events and according to Tehran Prosecutor's Office another nine death sentences have been issued that will be executed if approved by the appeals court.
http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Arash-Rahmani-Pour--Mohammad-Reza-Ali-Zamani.jpg
Arash Rahmanipour (left) and Mohammadreza Ali-Zamani
Ayatollah Janati criticized the failure of authorities to execute the perpetrators of similar reformist protests that took place ten years ago, and he maintained: "if you show any weakness now, a worse future will await you."
<table width="535" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="1" bordercolor="#008000" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td> http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Basij-shooting-at-protesters-Dec27-Tehran-3.jpg (http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Basij-shooting-at-protesters-Dec27-Tehran-3-highres.jpg)
Basij militants shooting at protesters during Ashura protests in Tehran on December 27
The opposition supporters have ignored repeated orders and threats by authorities to stop protesting. They have continued to hold rallies despite government's refusal to issue them permits. At least 8 people were killed by security forces during the Ashura protests in Tehran on December 27 when the security forces opened fire on them and in some cases ran over them with police cars. The protesters fought back firecely in response to the attack by security forces and Basij militia.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
In the past seven months over five thousand election protesters have been arrested and at least 40 have been killed.
Reportedly, many detainees have been abused and tortured. A parliamentary probe into the treatment of post-election detainees was recently released confirming that a group of detainees were severely abused and at least three of them were killed as a result of torture and beatings while in jail.
Read full report (http://www.isna.ir/ISNA/NewsView.aspx?ID=News-1482589) of the Friday Prayers by ISNA (in Persian)
</td></tr></tbody></table>
Today at dawn, 37-year-old Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani and 19-year-old Arash Rahmanipour were hanged after being convicted of attempting to overthrow the Iranian regime. The two were among over 100 detainees who were put on trial following street protests that erupted in Iran following the disputed reelection of President Mahmud Ahmadinejad.
<table width="460" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="1" bordercolor="#00aa00" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td> http://www.payvand.com/news/09/dec/Ashoura-protests-by-TehranLive6.jpg
An injured Iranian opposition supporter flashes a V-sign during clashes with security forces in Tehran on December 27.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
The protests shook the clerical establishment and plunged the Islamic republic into its worst crisis. The mass trial was condemned by rights groups as a parody of justice.
Ali Zamani and Rahmanipour's executions, the first of people tried after the post-election unrest, are seen as a move to create fear and intimidate the opposition.
The executions come ahead of the February 11 anniversary of the 1979 revolution that is expected to lead to fresh antigovernment protests.
Timing Of Arrests
Nasrin Sotoudeh, a prominent Tehran-based human rights lawyer who represented Rahmanipour, tells RFE/RL Rahmanipour's case had nothing to do with the postelection unrest.
She says he was arrested in April, three months before the presidential vote, and that she was denied of the right to defend him adequately.
"The speed with which the sentence was issued and executed demonstrates that the goal is to create fear among the people, particularly after the Ashura" unrest on the religious holiday at the end of December, she says.
"I think the establishment is trying to transfer its own fear to the society while the carrying out of such sentences will only radicalize the society," Sotoudeh adds.
Sotoudeh says Rahmanipour was pressured in court[/"]400 Bad Request to make a false confession about his role in a plot to create disorder during the election.
According to some reports Ali Zamani was also arrested before the June election. He's also said to have been under pressure to make a similar confession.
Both men were charged with being members of an exiled monarchist group, "The Assembly of Kingdom," whose aims include toppling the Iranian regime.
Sotoudeh says Rahmanipour was originally detained for having materials that could be used for producing explosives.
"Some materials, chemical fertilizers, were found at his house, it was said that Arash was planning to use them to produce explosive materials," Sotoudeh says.
She adds that even if the accusation is true, having chemical fertilizer "is not a crime. Even if he had acquired it with the aim of producing explosives, he hadn't done anything."
Death Sentences
Rahmanipour and Ali Zamani were among 11 detainees sentenced to death on charges that include "waging war against God" (Moharebeh) and membership in an armed opposition group. Observers warn that their execution could pave the way for more hangings over the postelection unrest.
Human rights groups including Amnesty International had called on Iran to review the death sentences.
Sotoudeh says Rahmanipour's execution is a clear violation of Iran's international human rights obligations, and that Iran "is responsible for an illegal and unfair execution of a human being and child called Arash Rahmanipour."
Earlier this month, Hadi Ghaemi of the International Campaign For Human Rights in Iran told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that the postelection death sentences demonstrate more than ever the need for the Islamic republic to abolish the death penalty, "because it will prevent killings in relation to political events."
Iran has one of the highest rates of execution in the world.
</td></tr></tbody></table>
==================================
<table width="100%" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" dir="ltr" align="left">'You Can't Punish Someone Before He Commits A Crime' </th></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" dir="ltr"> Source: RFE/RL (http://www.rferl.org/content/You_Cant_Punish_Someone_Before_He_Commits_A_Crime/1943349.html)
Nineteen-year-old Arash Rahmanipour was executed in Iran on January 28 after being convicted of waging war against God and attempting to overthrow the Iranian regime. The charges against Rahmanipour related to his alleged role in Iran's postelection unrest. His father, Davoud Rahmanipour, told Radio Farda broadcaster Baktash Khamsehpour about what he called an unjust sentence against his son.
http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Arash-Rahmanipour-in-court.jpg
Arash Rahmanipour
Radio Farda: Was your son a member of the monarchist group called the Assembly of the Kingdom -- which, according to Iranian officials, aims to overthrow the Iranian regime?
Davoud Rahmanipour: I don't know, because for the past year, due to some problems, I was in one of the provinces and I don't have enough information about it.
Radio Farda: You reportedly found out about the execution of your son through the media. Officials had not informed you, is that right?
Rahmanipour: Yes, on Monday night my son contacted me and told me that we could visit him on Thursday [January 28]. We were happy and on Thursday we went to visit him at Evin Prison, but there we were told that he has been transferred to Karaj. That's all [the prison officials] said and we believed them. On the way we realized that state television had announced that he had been hanged that morning and became a martyr.
Radio Farda: This is a very great loss for your family. Can you tell us how this has affected your family?
Rahmanipour: Naturally we're all very upset -- we've lost a loved one -- but what is important is Arash's intentions. He was seeking justice and humanity; he faced some problems because of his young age, but he was always seeking justice.
Radio Farda: Did you try to do anything to prevent the execution of your son?
Rahmanipour: The sentence was very unjust. I tried to refer to Islam and Islamic kindness and told his judge that my son didn't do anything, he didn't spill anybody's blood and didn't use a bomb, he didn't have weapons. They said he was planning to do this and that, but he didn't even know how the next day was going to look. Even if we accept that he intended to commit [a crime], you can't [punish] that person before he has committed a crime.
I wrote to the judge that my son hasn't done anything, and that you can't sentence him based on his childish thoughts. The judge didn't even talk to my son for two minutes, he just talked to him for about a minute and a half. I was there. He just asked him how much his father makes, and how many siblings he has.
There was another court session in which Arash made some confessions, and it's not clear which part was true or whether it was dictated to him and was not true. Leave it to the future and history and awakening consciences.
<hr> Copyright (c) 2010 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org (http://www.rferl.org/) ... Payvand News - 01/29/10 ... --
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<table width="100%" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" dir="ltr">
</td></tr> <tr><th colspan="2" dir="ltr" align="left"> Hardliner Cleric Commends Iran Executions, Wants More </th></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" dir="ltr"> Source: Radio Zamaneh (http://radiozamaneh.com/enzam/)
Ayatollah Ahmad Janati told today's worshipers at Tehran's Friday Mass prayers that it is no time to show "mercy" and if we show any "weakness," we will run into difficulties. He called on the Head of the Judiciary to confront "rioters" firmly without mercy.
<table bgcolor="#ffffff" border="1" bordercolor="#ff0000" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td> http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Ahmad-Janati.jpg
[B]Ahmad Janati
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
He went on to commend Ayatollah Larijani, Head of the Judiciary for issuing the death sentence of the two detainees that were hanged yesterday.
Yesterday, Mohammadreza Ali-Zamani and Arash Rahmanipour were executed in connection with the post-election events and according to Tehran Prosecutor's Office another nine death sentences have been issued that will be executed if approved by the appeals court.
http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Arash-Rahmani-Pour--Mohammad-Reza-Ali-Zamani.jpg
Arash Rahmanipour (left) and Mohammadreza Ali-Zamani
Ayatollah Janati criticized the failure of authorities to execute the perpetrators of similar reformist protests that took place ten years ago, and he maintained: "if you show any weakness now, a worse future will await you."
<table width="535" bgcolor="#ffffff" border="1" bordercolor="#008000" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr> <td> http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Basij-shooting-at-protesters-Dec27-Tehran-3.jpg (http://www.payvand.com/news/10/jan/Basij-shooting-at-protesters-Dec27-Tehran-3-highres.jpg)
Basij militants shooting at protesters during Ashura protests in Tehran on December 27
The opposition supporters have ignored repeated orders and threats by authorities to stop protesting. They have continued to hold rallies despite government's refusal to issue them permits. At least 8 people were killed by security forces during the Ashura protests in Tehran on December 27 when the security forces opened fire on them and in some cases ran over them with police cars. The protesters fought back firecely in response to the attack by security forces and Basij militia.
</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
In the past seven months over five thousand election protesters have been arrested and at least 40 have been killed.
Reportedly, many detainees have been abused and tortured. A parliamentary probe into the treatment of post-election detainees was recently released confirming that a group of detainees were severely abused and at least three of them were killed as a result of torture and beatings while in jail.
Read full report (http://www.isna.ir/ISNA/NewsView.aspx?ID=News-1482589) of the Friday Prayers by ISNA (in Persian)
</td></tr></tbody></table>