Per Clausen, a member of the European Parliament from Denmark’s Red-Green Alliance party, announced that he has taken political sponsorship of two political prisoners on death row in Iran, Mehdi Hasani and Behrouz Ehsani-Eslamloo.
On Monday, March 3, Clausen wrote on X (formerly Twitter), highlighting the Iranian government’s execution of approximately 1,000 people annually: “Today, I decided, as a member of the European Parliament, to take political sponsorship of these two prisoners who are at imminent risk of execution.”
Det iranske præstestyre henretter omkring 1000 mennesker om året. Mennesker som ofte kun har gjort sig skyld i at yde modstand mod dette regimes undertrykkelse af sin egen befolkning. Det har jeg ofte protesteret imod.
I dag har jeg så besluttet at oprette et politisk faderskab… pic.twitter.com/2D6eHlMNdf
— Per Clausen (@PerClausen3) March 3, 2025
Earlier, Branch 39 of Iran’s Supreme Court announced that it had rejected the appeal request for a retrial of Behrouz Ehsani-Eslamloo and Mehdi Hasani.
Hasani and Ehsani have been sentenced to death on charges including “rebellion (Baghi), waging war against God (Moharebeh), corruption on earth (Efsad fil-Arz),” as well as “membership in the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK)” (the main opposition group to the regime), “gathering classified information,” and “assembly and collusion against national security.”
According to Amnesty International, at least 853 people were executed in Iran in 2023, marking a 48% increase compared to the previous year. The wave of executions has continued in 2024, with at least 1,000 executions, including protesters and civil activists, being executed following unfair trials in Iran’s Revolutionary Courts.
Human rights activists have warned that the execution of Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hasani could signal the beginning of a new wave of executions.
Human rights organizations continue to call for international pressure to halt the implementation of death sentences in Iran.
Iran: Behrouz Ehsani Said; I Have Never Bargained Over My Life with Anyone
Amnesty International has stressed that the death penalty is a blatant violation of the right to life and has called for its immediate abolition in Iran.
In addition to Mehdi Hasani and Behrouz Ehsani-Eslamloo, several other political prisoners, including Pakhshan Azizi and Varisheh Moradi, are also at risk of execution.
