In a statement, the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran urged Iran’s regime to immediately stop carrying out the death sentences of defendants in the case known as the “Alikhani Square” case in the city of Isfahan.
The mission said on Thursday, July 23, that according to credible information it has received, the families of at least two more individuals sentenced in this case have been summoned for final visits, raising concerns that the executions may be imminent.
The “Alikhani Square” case is related to the January protests in Isfahan. Earlier, the Committee for Following Up on the Situation of Detainees in Iran reported that Iran’s Supreme Court had upheld the death sentences of 12 detainees in this case. One week after that announcement, two of those sentenced, Golmohammad Mohammadi and Erfan Esfandiari, were executed.
The UN fact-finding mission also expressed concern over the accelerating pace of executions of protesters in Iran and called on officials of Iran’s regime to refrain from carrying out these death sentences.
The mission had previously warned that during periods of social and political unrest in Iran, the issuance and implementation of death sentences intensify and that capital punishment is used as a tool to instill fear, suppress dissent, and retaliate against protesters.
