Iran International
Six prisoners, including one who was a minor at the time of his sentencing, were transferred to solitary cells in Adelabad prison in Shiraz, Iran on Thursday, in preparation for their execution.
Former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's aides and supporters posted several of such videos even before the registration started.
In a poorly produced video posted by a former Ahmadinejad aide, the former President is seen outside his home in the Narmak neighborhood of east Tehran, surrounded by a small group of supporters from Gilan Province. One of the supporters is seen pleading with Ahmadinejad to announce his candidacy to save the country from its current difficult situation. The man claims that thousands would have come to his house if they had known about the meeting.
In another video, that was deleted later, a group of people from the city of Jahrom in Fars province gather at the same place with the same demand. Again, Ahmadinejad said he is summing up the situation and calculating whether to register, which could mean he is waiting for the go-ahead from Khamenei.
Despite Ahmadinejad's perceived popularity for his criticisms of the ruling elite, voter turnout has plummeted in recent elections. In both 2021 and 2024, most voters shunned the ballot box. Official figures for the March 1 parliamentary election reported 40% participation, though many believe the actual number to be lower. Voters are increasingly disillusioned, doubting that the highly stage-managed elections can address their severe economic hardships. Inflation hovers around 50%, and the national currency is near its all-time lows.
On Thursday, one video showed a group of former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili's supporters waiting for him in front of the Interior Ministry, and another video showed him arriving to register his candidacy.
Meanwhile, Tehran Mayor Alireza Zakani's team apparently made a propaganda blunder by calling on everyone to invite Zakani to register. Twitter user Mohammad Parsi quoted the statement on Jahan News and wrote that Zakani is in fact inviting himself to become a candidate.
Meanwhile, some potential candidates are trying to generate excitement and speculation about their participation in the election, aiming to stir interest and anticipation around their potential candidacy.
The reform camp that has been doing the same during the past week by trying to create a mood of suspense, finally announced that it will take part in the election only if the government accepts its conditions. The main condition set by the reform front is that the government and the Guardian Council should accept at least one of the candidates exclusively introduced by the reform camp.
Many ‘reformist’ activists on social media described the decision that was made after a five-hour long meeting Wednesday night as "clever." Others advised that so-called reformist figures close to the core of the government such as Massoud Pezeshkian should not be named as the front's candidate. Pezeshkian whose credentials were rejected for the March parliamentary elections, was later allowed to run after Khamenei told the Guardian Council to avert its decision about him. He registered as a candidate on Saturday, but it is not certain if ‘reformists’ will designate him as their candidate.
Another one of those ‘reformist’ figures who lacks the backing of the Reform Front is Mostfa Kavakebian the leader of Mardom Salari [Democracy] party, a low-profile proreform party with no defined agenda.
Journalist and political activist Sajjad Abedi wrote in a May 30 tweet: "It is interesting that there is still no invitation campaign to call on the main choice for presidency to come forward. I can say with certainty that he is going to surprise all those who have been furthering their early campaigns." Abedi could have been talking about Acting President Mohammad Mokhber or Roads Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash who was present at Khamenei's meeting with Syria's Basahar Asad visiting Tehran this week.
Among these prisoners is Aref Rasouli, a 20-year-old young man whose case has underscored a significant ongoing issue: Iran's persistent violation of international human rights standards by sentencing minors to death.
Rasouli was reportedly born on 25 April 2004, making him 17 years old at the time of his alleged crime. Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), which reported on his transfer to solitary confinement, has urged the international community and all countries with diplomatic relations with Iran to use every available channel to halt these executions. IHRNGO Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam stated:
“The international community’s reaction can prevent the execution of Aref Rasouli and the other death row prisoners. Executing child offenders is a flagrant breach of international law and the Islamic Republic’s treaty obligations. The international community shouldn’t allow child offender executions to continue.”
The Islamic Penal Code and Iran’s Breach of International Laws
Executing individuals for crimes committed under the age of 18 contravene international human rights norms, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the the Convention on the Rights of the Child, both of which Iran has ratified.
According to Iran's 2013 Islamic Penal Code, the age of criminal responsibility is 15 for boys and 9 for girls. This means they can be sentenced to death for murder and other capital crimes in Iran.
Although the May 2013 update to the Islamic Penal Code allowed judges to replace the death penalty if juvenile offenders lacked an understanding of the crime or their mental maturity was in doubt, Iran persists in imposing such sentences. that Iran’s claims of reform of the justice system with the 2013 May are “not reality” and that “little has changed in practice”.
Notably this provision further emphasized Iran’s disregard for meeting its international obligations, which strictly prohibit such sentences for juvenile offenders under any circumstances in the first place.
Even if Iran were to adhere to its obligations under international law, the country's judiciary faces scrutiny by International rights groups for its track record of sham trials and blatant disregard for due process, with detainees frequently denied legal representation.
Recent Cases of Child Offenders on Death Row Executed in Iran
Earlier this month, 20-year-old Ramin Sa’adat was executed at Miandoab Prison in West Azarbaijan province for a murder he committed at the age of 16, as reported by Kurdpa. Despite Saadat maintaining his innocence throughout his trial, his sentence was carried out on 18 May 2024.
Transparency remains elusive, with Iran withholding crucial data on executions, including those of juvenile offenders. However, as many as 85 juveniles could be on death row in Iran’s prisons as per a 2021 UN report.
Of the juvenile offenders on death row, at least 5 were executed in 2023, as per Amnesty reports.
One of those executed in 20203, was Hamid Azari who not only was sentenced to death when he was a minor, but also executed when he was only 17 years old.
“Hamidreza Azari was arrested when he was just 16 years old and executed less than seven months later after a grossly unfair trial that was expedited by prosecution authorities. The Iranian authorities misrepresented his age as 18 in domestic media to evade accountability for violating international law which prohibits the imposition of death sentences on people under 18 at the time of the crime,” Amnesty stated.
In 2022, at least 3 juvenile offenders were executed on murder charges according to IHRNGO. Of those executed, included Yousef Mirzavand who was sentenced to death for a murder he allegedly committed at age 16.
“His family said he was innocent...someone else committed the murder and Yousef had taken the wrap for it…Yousef was from the Mirzavand tribe in Lorestan…” an informed source told IHRNGO. Mirzavand was executed in Dezful Prison on 26 December 2022.
With the fate of Rasouli and other juvenile offenders including Arvin Ghahremani hanging in the balance, and as advocacy groups continue to sound the alarm, the imperative to confront Iran's egregious human rights violations grows ever more urgent.
